Of Witches and Ghosts
by Fantasy Amy Rose Co
Summary: *AU After a horrific incident in New Orleans, young witch, Samantha Manson, finds herself being moved to a small town called Amity Park, a town practically crawling with ghosts, including a handsome white haired youth by the name Phantom. It appears her problems back in New Orleans have followed her, despite her attempts to give up the casting life. Redone from mmers.
1. Chapter 1

It was a dark night. The air was still and thick. The Spanish moss that usually swayed in the breeze hung loose in the trees. It was as if the wind had gone into hiding that night, waiting out the foreboding events that were soon to come. Even the moon herself was seldom seen.

High above the darkened skyline of New Orleans, atop a large building, a battle of epic proportions was underway.

A pair of daemon brothers of monumental power were locked in an age-old battle for ownership of the Earth. The daemons were not just massive in power but also in height. They both stood at 8 feet. Their actual appearance was undetermined, for in their incomplete state they stood as two giant intimidating figures. Their soul-piercing yellow eyes were the only features to have manifested.

But it wasn't each other they were fighting.

Their opponents, oddly enough, were five young girls. Very young, they all looked to be no older than 18. One of them, dressed in a light blue cloak, was already bruised and bleeding. The girls stood evenly spaced around the demons at the points of a pentacle hastily marked on the ground in white chalk. Light blue, yellow gold, cherry red, dark obsidian and deep green and purple, the girls, battered, bruised and exhausted from the battle, held tightly to crystals, whose colors and magick intertwined with their users.

In unison, they sang their spell, their voices finely tuned and synced as the keys on a xylophone:

_"Daemons dark from shadow dwell,_

_Chaotic forces we wish to quell,_

_To rid the Earth of your sick unwell,_

_We cast you Daemons Back to Hell."_

They intoned the first verse together, then they spoke one by one. The girl dressed in gold sung first.

_"For all the creatures of the night,_

_And the birds who trade in flight,_

_Your darkness we now quell,_

_We cast you daemons back to hell."_

The first crystal glowed with a golden light, like that of the sun. Next, the girl dressed in obsidian chanted.

_"For the creatures of the fur and creatures of the fin_

_We doom you daemons now within your mortal skin,_

_Your evil we now quell,_

_We cast you daemons back to hell."_

The second crystal began to glow with a dark black and silver light. After her came the one dressed in blue.

_"For all the magic of the light,_

_We here refuse to give up the fight,_

_Your horror we now quell,_

_We cast you daemons back to hell."_

The third crystal lit with a sky blue light. Almost instantly, the girl dressed in bright scarlet sung out.

_"For the survival of our kind,_

_Your powers we now bind,_

_Your madness we now quell,_

_We cast you daemons back to hell."_

The fourth crystal shone with a red glow. And finally, like her sisters before her, the girl dressed in dark purple and green sung in her mezzo-soprano voice.

_"For the life of the land,_

_From this world, you now are banned,_

_Your perversions we now quell,_

_We cast you daemons back to hell."_

The fifth and final crystal shone with dark green and purple light and the girls began to chant in sync once more, their voices rising with each line trying to be heard against the growing thunder that rumbled and roared in the skies.

_"Daemons dark from shadows dwell,_

_Chaotic forces we wish to quell,_

_To rid the Earth of your sick unwell,_

_WE CAST YOU DAEMONS BACK TO HELL!"_

The light from the five crystals raced out to join each other in a series of lines, a five-pointed star. The lines copied the pentacle beneath them and light shot forth once more, arcing up into the sky and meeting high above the daemons. The beasts were now trapped in a cage of pure light.

The light grew brighter and brighter, closing in around the daemons until the light beams had become a blinding pinnacle. One by one, the brave young women fell to their knees as their energy drained into the binding spell's power. The pinnacle's brightness lit up the surrounding area as if night had turned into day before it exploded outward sending waves of concussive force across the sky, totally obliterating the daemons. The sky faded once more to inky black, thunder rumbled in across the sky, bringing a shower of rain with it. Every one the girls fell and losing consciousness.

—-

"I agree that she shouldn't stay here but... Mother, you have trouble looking after yourself as it is and I hear there's a lot of hooligans around. I really don't think Amity Park is the best place for Samantha right now," said a concerned male voice.

"Oh, pish-posh! Sam and I can take care of ourselves. Besides, I have some nice young people who love to help me out and they'd be good for Sam. They're about her age and they go to the local high school so they could help her ease in," an elderly voice said confidently.

"Maybe it would be best if she went with your mother, dear. I mean, it's a small town and there probably won't be any of these hard-core gang types like those animals that did this to the girls."

Sam's mind told her she could hear - she knew she was definitely hearing, but the words, the words made no sense to her. Zoey...Zoey would know what they were talking about; Zoey always knew. There was something else she heard. Purring, very familiar purring. _Nyx...?_

"Z- Zo- Zoey?" It felt like she had a giant rock stuck in her throat. That wasn't right, why did it hurt to speak?

"Sammy-kins, oh baby, are you finally awake? Please speak to me, speak to mommy."

Mommy? What was she talking about? Where was Zoey? Why didn't she answer?

"Zoey?" Sam tried again; her speech was less staggered this time, but it still hurt to talk.

"No, sweetie, it's Mom and Dad... and your grandma."

Mom? Dad? They were here, but where was Zoey?

"Excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. Manson?" A new voice from a little further away, she knew that voice.

"Barbra?" Sam called for her friend. She heard wheels on vinyl. That was not right, either; that was not Barbra's walk.

"Sam?" Barbra's voice spoke close to her ear. "Sam, will you please open your eyes and look at me, I have to tell you something. It's important; it's about Zoey."

Open her eyes? Of course, they were shut; that's why there was darkness everywhere. Sam's eyes slid open slowly. At first, her eyes burned at the blinding fluorescent lights above her. Her head was pounding and she felt a little queasy. She groaned as she clutched her forehead to ease the pain. On her fingers, she then felt something that felt wet sandpaper gently grazing her knuckles. When her eyes adjusted, she looked to her side and saw a cat with long black fur and deep, intelligent green eyes. It was her familiar (unbeknownst to her mother and father), Nyx. Sam smiled and weakly stroked her loyal companion's fur.

Now fully conscious, Sam was able to observe her surroundings. She was laying in a hospital. White walls, white sheets, etc. She saw a black letterman's jacket, decorated with patches, symbols, as well as buttons and ribbons that ranged in shades of green and purple. On the back was an embroidered symbol of the number five, encased in a circle. It was her Circle of Five jacket. All of the girls had one; the colors personalized for each of them, of course. She looked to her left and saw her mother, her father, dressed in their usual 50's pin-up country club clothes, and her grandma, wearing one of her typical sweaters and large fishbowl glasses. They all looked incredibly relieved to see her awake and alive.

And to her right, was Barbra, whose blue eyes were bloodshot, her auburn hair tousled. She looked like she hadn't slept in weeks. But that wasn't what caught Sam's eyes.

"Barb?" Sam tried to sit up slowly but she found she lacked the strength.

"I'm sorry Sam," Barbra's eyes glistened with fresh tears, "Zoey didn't make it."

"The others?" Sam hardly dared to ask; she knew the cost might be high but this...

"Selene has total amnesia. Haley is a basket of nerves, she was out for three days, and..." Barbra trailed off. The tears were leaving tracks down her cheeks.

"Barb? Barbra, why are you in a wheelchair?" Sam had managed to roll onto her side and now she could see what it was that was wrong. "Barb, how long have I been out?"

"Three weeks, Sam. You've been out for three weeks."

—-

Two days after Sam had woken up in Hospital, she had been allowed to leave.

She and Barbra had walked, or in Barbra's case rolled, to the local cemetery; to the grave of their friend, their sister at heart, Zoey. Perched on top of the grave was a large, black raven, Morrigan; she was Zoey's familiar. The poor creature was probably so lost; most familiars were when they lost their masters.

Zoey had been the first one in their group of five to find her artifact; she had been the keeper of The Grimoire, the first to try a spell from it. They had all cast spells from the book but Zoey had been the first and most daring of all the girls when it came to magic. She had been the, most reasonable too, she had been the driving force leading them into the many battles they have been part of, but now there was no one to bear the Compass artifact.

Zoey had died. Selene, left with amnesia, had moved away. Haley, now scared of the smallest noise, would move away tomorrow and the day after Sam herself, would be gone. Barbra would be alone in New Orleans. The only comfort Sam had was that the rift that had allowed demons access to the city had closed when they had banished the Daemon lords Balthazar and Beelzebub.

"Sam, Zoey told me before she died; if we were to separate that she wanted you to care for her artifact. Just until its next owner needs it," Barbra instructed. "She thought it might do you the most good and I agree, that you should be the new keeper of the book. You're going to need it the most - I did some research and apparently, there is a lot of paranormal activity in Amity Park, ghosts and the like mostly, so you shouldn't have to worry too much, your Grandma did say they weren't that bad."

Sam took a big gulp of air before she spoke. "Barb, I don't think I should cast anymore. Don't talk. Just listen, please. The night Zoey summoned Beelzebub and Balthazar, I... I said some things to her. I think I'm the one who made Zoey cast the summons. Her death is my fault because I can't watch my own stupid mouth. If I can get someone killed just by talking, Barb, what if I kill someone with a cast because I was careless in my wording? I don't think I should be allowed anywhere near the book." A single tear slid down Sam's cheek.

Barbra took her friend by the hand. For a while they just stayed by Zoey's grave before Barbra spoke once more, her blue eyes cloaked in a white mist.

"You're going to need the book, Poison Ivy. You'll need it if you want to save him, your true one. He walks in two worlds and yet he belongs to neither," she said in a monotone voice. "Give him a world where he can belong - for there too can you belong. You have many battles ahead little Ivy, many things you cannot face alone. Trust the old willow, she can help, she can teach you things you have not drowned in the growth long enough to learn."

Sam's purple eyes momentarily glazed with a forest green as she looked at her chair-bound friend.

"Barbra, if you can't be Batgirl anymore, who are you?"

The white vanished from Barbra's eyes and their gazes locked.

"I am Oracle now."

—

From the window of her Grandma's van, Sam could see only a small portion of Amity Park but her Grams had said it was bigger than it looked and Sam wasn't inclined to disagree. Sam, dressed a large, dark green button-down blouse and black shorts, lazily gazed at the passing scenes of shops, office buildings, and apartments as she continued to pet and scratch Nyx's head. The said feline was quite content with lounging in her mistress' lap, loudly purring the whole drive.

The trip from the Amity Park Airport was a short one, and the two women soon reached their destination - Grammy Manson's house. It was a large house, not that it surprised her. Her parents most likely paid for it, as well as the care that came with it.

On the front porch steps was a boy who looked to be Sam's age. His pitch-black hair was scruffy and he wore a white hoodie with a red shirt underneath, a simple pair of jeans and red sneakers. Seeing how hunched over he was just from sitting on a step, she could imagine he was taller than he looked.

"Oh, how lovely, Danny's waiting for me to come home." Grammy Manson said to Sam as they got out of the car. Hearing the van doors open, Danny's head shot up and he smiled. Sam quirked an eyebrow at him. She had to admit that he was quite handsome in a dorky kind of way. His smile was sweet and friendly, and his eyes were the exact shade of the Mississippi River.

"Hey Gramm," he said as he got up and jogged over to her. "I was getting worried you were never coming back. Did you have a nice trip?" As she predicted, Danny was taller than Grammy Manson by far and when he hugged her he lifted her almost a foot off the ground.

"It was very nice, thank you, Danny. My granddaughter is awake now - in fact, she's around the other side of the car." Grammy Manson opened the back of the van and Danny automatically grabbed her bags for her. He put one down beside his feet and reached back in for another bag, a black duffle bag with an odd symbol in purple that he couldn't quite see when a hand stopped him. He looked up and for a moment he thought he was drowning in a purple eternity. And then he was jolted back to reality.

"That...," Sam hissed. "...is my bag. You do not touch it. Ever." She grabbed her bag as well as another identical bag that had been hidden behind it.

Danny put his hands up in surrender. "U-um...okay, sorry 'bout that..."

Sam gave him a short glance before heading for the front door. "C'mon, Nyx, let's get inside."

Danny raised an eyebrow, before the sound of a cat meow at his feet. He jumped and looked down to see that green-eyed creature staring up at him. He could've sworn the cat had glared at him for a split second.

But the second was over and the cat followed Sam into the house.

Danny stared after her for a minute, absolute confusion washing over him. He shook his head before grabbing the bag from beside his feet and taking off after her. Shutting the back of the van, Grammy Manson followed at a slower pace, a smile lining her lips.

Ps. Daemons in this context refers to upper-level demons, demons refer to, well demons, as a race in general.


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing that Sam did when she stepped into her Gramm's mansion was head _straight _for the backyard to take a glimpse at the garden.

It. Was. Tragic.

The trees were fine because, well, they're trees. But everything else- the vegetable garden, flowers, shrubs, _everything _was dying (or dead.) The poor pond dried up with no life in sight. The cobblestone path that weaved through the garden was horribly withered and the chains on the garden swing looked ready to snap at any moment. The one saving grace of this garden was the space. She had room to put a whole greenhouse!

"I'm a little embarrassed to let you see this, button," her Gramm said with a sheepish smile.

Sam sighed and stood defeatedly on the veranda. "Geez, Gramm, no offense, but it looks like a plague of locusts hit this place. What happened?"

Sure, it's been a while since she's been to her Gramm's house, but surely it wasn't long enough for a flourishing garden to look _this _bad.

"I'm getting on in years, button, and these old legs of mine can only take so much," Gramm chuckled.

Sam felt guilt in her bones for not realizing this fact. However, she looked over her shoulder through the glass door to see that boy, Danny, awkwardly trying to carry in the bags without tripping over his own feet. Nyx was currently leering at him from her perch on one of the armchairs in the living room.

Sam rolled her eyes. "Isn't that what you have _him _for?"

Gramm looked back the clumsy boy in her house. "Danny? Hah! The boy doesn't exactly have a green thumb, button."

"I see," Sam hummed as she smirked at Danny. The poor boy was still struggling with the bags. Now that she was looking at him she could see how tall he really was. He had long legs with big feet and large hands. Something told her he was still growing, though. He had the lanky, awkward height that most 16-17-year-old guys go through at some point.

Not that she was looking too deeply at him, of course.

"Just another reason to have you here with me! You have free range, button, it's all yours!" her Gramm exclaimed with a twinkle in her frosty blue eyes.

Sam's violet gaze just stayed locked on her grandmother in shock for the longest time.

Soon, for the first time in weeks, Sam felt her cheeks grow sore from the large smile that stretched across her face. Without a word, she bent to give her sweet grandmother a desperate hug.

Neither of them noticed the smile on Danny's face as he watched them.

* * *

_Do you always trust_

_Your first initial feeling?_

_Special knowledge holds true,_

_Bears believing._

_I turned around,_

_And the water,_

_Was closing, all around. _

_Like a glove, like a love_

_That had finally, finally found me._

Sam sat alone in her new room, singing lowly to herself along with the song that played from her speakers. She had settled in quite well. Her room was exactly how she liked it, dark, quiet and soothing. The scent of her lavender incense filled the room. It was quite a large room with dark plum-colored walls. She had a queen-sized bed all to herself and beautiful mahogany furniture including a wardrobe, dressers, a desk, and a large bookshelf. She had already filled said bookshelf with endless amounts of books, candles, oils, and even some potions and charms that she was determined to leave untouched.

Sam was currently laying on her bed flipping through the scrapbook that she and her coven sisters had filled throughout the years with memories. Pictures of the five girls littered the pages; some were even accompanied by scrapbooking odds and ends that the girls had found from their trips to the various voodoo shops of their hometown. Some of the pages even held loose sheets of paper with their spur of the moment spells. Said spells had been formally transferred to in The Grimoire of course.

One photo, in particular, caught Sam's eye; it was the five of them sitting on a seawall. She scanned over every face of her sisters. For she knew there was very little chance she'd see any of them, except Barb, ever again.

On the far left, sipping on a blue and red slushie, was Hayley. Her icy blond hair was held up in its usual ponytail, her red highlights glistening in the setting sun. She wore a letterman's jacket similar to Sam's, except her the main color for her jacket decor was red. She had the same mischievous glint in her eyes as she always did.

Next to her was Selene. Like Sam, Selene preferred to dress in rather dark colors, however, Selene always liked to add a bit of bling to her dark attire, silver earrings, silver necklace, silver anything. Selene just really liked silver. In fact in the picture, she wore said silver necklace with a teardrop onyx jewel. Selene gave the camera a sultry smile with her dark eyes, making sure to keep her matching, equally dark hair out of the way.

Zoey sat next to her in the very center, dressed in blue, her own Circle of Five jacket covered in blue, jeans, and a blue tank top, like always. She had the same confident smile that Sam remembered. Her stick-straight black hair was out of the way and appeared to be swaying in whatever wind was blowing that day.

Sitting next to her was Sam. She was the only one out of all of them that wasn't smiling. She never smiled in pictures. She was dressed in her favorite dark green crochet slouch sweater, black shorts, purple stockings, and black combat boots.

And last at the very end was Barbra. She cradled her head in her hands where she had her nails painted a stunning tone of gold. Her auburn hair was pulled back to keep the curly locks out of her face, a common issue she has.

Vital memories come from that wall. In fact, that was where Sam had first met Zoey and Barbra.

_It was autumn and dusk had been drawing near. At the age of 12, Sam had been sitting alone on the seawall for almost an hour trying to figure out what had happened; what she had done, or at least what she was pretty sure she had done. _

_Was that her? Did she do that? No, that wasn't possible._

_The wind picked up some of the loose leaves and was tossing them around on the ground when a voice pierced Sam's thoughts._

_"Hey, Poison Ivy." It called. It was followed by another voice, muffled and low._

_"Z, she probably doesn't know who you're talking to."_

_"Fine," It was the first voice again. "Hey! Missy! You in the purple!."_

_Sam turned her head to look at the two girls; the first had jet-black hair that hung loosely around her shoulders and blue jeans and a denim jacket over a light blue top. The second girl had her light red hair up in a ponytail and black jeans and a matching skivvy with a strange yellow and black symbol, which looked like a bat silhouette across the front._

_The girl in blue spoke up. "So, Poison Ivy girl, that was some pretty cool manip you did back there."_

_Sam blinked; what was this girl talking about?_

_"What are you talking about, and why do you keep calling me Poison Ivy?"_

_Sam waited for her to reply. Looking the girls over, she noticed the black-haired girl wore a strange looking compass attached to her jeans belt loop._

_"Because, Poison Ivy, unless I'm mistaken the vines you used to stop those bulldozers were poison ivy, am I wrong?" The girl dressed in blue blinked innocently at Sam._

_"It was Athosian poison ivy, and what makes you think I had anything to do with it?" Sam sent the girls a rather suspicious glance. _

_"Name's Zoey, friends call me Zantana, and what you did falls under the category of really cool paranormal stuff, which makes it my specialty."_

_"And I'm Barbra, just in case you were wondering," said the girl with auburn hair. _

_"But I call her Batgirl." Zoey smiled and Barbra rolled her eyes at her friend._

_"Batgirl?" Sam asked._

_"There was an incident," Barbra admitted. "With bats, hence 'Batgirl.'"_

_"So Ivy, what's the difference, between that Athosy Ivy and normal poison ivy?" Zoey asked out of the blue, as she plopped herself next to Sam. Barbra also sat on the opposite side of sam._

_"Athosian. It's the only type of ivy with flowers, they're small and purple. Now you tell me, what makes you think that what I did back there was 'really cool paranormal stuff' and where did you get the name 'Zantana' from anyway?" Sam looked between the two girls._

_"Because Ivy, we're witches. No! Seriously! And we have powers too - just not exactly like yours - and we'd like to help. Okay, we have to help. As for the name, it belonged to one of my ancestors; she worked as a magician's assistant and, well considering the circumstances I was under when I first used my powers, I thought it was appropriate." Zoey explained with a casual wave of her hand._

_"So...when you say you wanna help," Sam asked cautiously. "What exactly do you mean?"_

_"Don't worry, hun, we're new to this whole magic thing too," Barbra said cutting Zoey off before she could speak. "And we thought it might be better if we didn't learn alone, if we all learn together it might be easier, and Z's artifact led us to you."_

_"Her artifact? What is an artifact?" Sam asked as she slid off the short wall._

_"See the compass I'm wearing? It is an artifact; an object of great power - this one helps me find direction, and leads me where I need to go if I can't find my way." Zoey detached the compass from her jeans and held it so Sam could see it better._

_"So, when you say learn, you mean..." Sam trailed away letting her question hang._

_"We mean research, and trial and error, with a team to help when one of us gets it wrong," Barbra said._

_"So what do you think, Ivy?" Zoey asked as she held out her hand in offering._

_"My name is Sam." Sam took Zoey's hand as she spoke._

_"Welcome to the team, Ivy."_

_"It's Sam."_

_"Don't worry, you'll get used to it."_

Over the next month, the girls had met Haley, who had been working as a clown at a carnival when her powers had first shown. There had been an "incident" with some balloons and being under the stress of self-entitled parents, instantly earning herself the nickname of 'Harlequin.'

Selene had first met Sam when she broke into Sam's house - Zoey had later given her the name 'Catwoman' for her cat-burglar habits when the girls met Selene a second time after her powers revealed themselves.

After two months of working together, all of the girls had found and earned an artifact. The girls had some shaky starts, but they'd always managed to fix any mistakes they made, and then, they received the book. While the artifacts were independent of the girl's powers and had no effect on them, the book had been different.

The girls had gathered in their usual meeting spot- an old mansion owned but never used by Barbra's parents. She had asked her parents if she could have it and they had no objections. They were never really that close.

The girls had sat in a circle for their meditation when a quiet hum filled the air. A point of light began to glow at the circle's center, and as quickly as it had started, the humming stopped, the light faded and all that remained was the Grimoire. Within it they had found pages and pages on different demonic and angelic beings, spells and descriptions of artifacts long since lost and, more importantly, the spell which had bound them together and increased their powers.

Sam shut her photo album and placed it carefully in the drawer next to her bed. She looked up and stared at her own Circle of Five jack that hung lifelessly on her desk chair. She remembered when Selene had designed one for all of them. She always had a knack for sewing. The jackets were symbols of unity and their sisterhood. A sisterhood that was now broken.

As for the Grimoire, Sam still had it. It was currently wrapped in a silky sheet under her bed. And that was where it was going to stay. Untouched.

She sighed, tiredly; the past could wait to be remembered. In the here and now her grandmother was calling her for tea.


	3. Chapter 3

"Ivy, hey Poison Ivy, come on, wake up. Oh, don't turn sleeping beauty on me, Ivy." A voice called to Sam from the darkness, she struggled to answer the familiar voice and slowly fading into existence was a very familiar sight.

"There you go. See? Not so hard," Zoey laughed. She looked _exactly _like how Sam remembered her. Same stick-straight black hair.

"You're dead." It was the first thing to cross Sam's lips. It was all she could think of.

"So they keep telling me, Ivy. But how 'bout you tell me how you're doing, really? I heard you quit casting," Zoey said, quirking an eyebrow and crossing her arms.

"I did." Two-word sentences were all Sam could manage. She was just too shocked for anything more than that.

"Aw, Ivy, turning your back on our destiny? Why? Because I died doing what needed to be done?"

Sam couldn't meet Zoey's eyes. It was then, as she looked away, that she realized where they were. The smell of sea salt wafted through her nose, and she could hear the sound of crying seagulls.

"The sea wall, Zoey?" Sam looked up at Zoey only to see her sitting next to her, with a disapproving look.

"Ivy, it was my time, you can't turn your back on our destiny, your destiny just because I'm not there anymore," Zoey explained, gently placing a hand on Sam's shoulder.

"You didn't need to die, Zoey. The Circle of Five has been broken, shattered. How can we still have a destiny if we are not together to achieve it?" Sam's eyes stung with tears. She wasn't sure if she was ready to face Zoey yet, if this was the real Zoey, that is.

"Ivy, read the book, what does it say in the prophecy of the Circle of Five? I'll tell you what it doesn't say, it doesn't say that we all had to be alive to see her come. We just open the way. I've seen, Ivy. I have seen the way things need to be and this is it." Zoey gave a lopsided smile ad just shrugged. "'Sides, me being dead ain't so bad. I might even get to become a guardian! I wouldn't be yours of course; I'd be a new witch's guardian, someone who needs my guidance more than you."

"But I do need you, Zoey. I don't understand, why did you give the book and your artifact to me, why not send the artifact back to its resting place?" Sam sobbed. The lump in her throat was becoming too much to bear. It was too hard to hear her sister's voice. A voice she may not ever hear again.

"Because you're going to need it. You'll figure it out." Zoey stood up and gave Sam a motherly pat on the head. "Oh, one last tip - ok two – one: don't blame yourself, alright? It was my doing. You couldn't have changed it; it was my fate. Two: Don't give up your gifts, sister. Don't forget your belt satchel or your artifacts."

Sam sighed and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"I'll come to see you later when you're really ready to talk, 'kay? See ya, Ivy."

Zoey slowly faded away, along with the world around her. All she left behind was the echo of Sam's magickal name.

"Zoey! Sister!" Sam cried into the impending darkness.

Sam shot up from her pillow, gasping for air. Her breathing was quick and shallow, and her nightshirt was plastered to her torso with cold sweat.

Her artifact, a silver pocket watch on a silver chain, felt like a world of weight hanging from her neck. The sound of its second hand pounded in her ear.

Sam heard a gentle "meow" from Nyx by her side. She smiled and gently scratched the cat's head.

"It's okay, Nyx," Sam assured. Her throat felt dry and scratchy. "It's okay."

She looked at her bedside clock. It was 2:14 In the morning. Sam was a natural night owl; being awake at such an ungodly hour was hardly jarring.

Sleep was hopeless and, honestly, she wouldn't accept it right now after that dream.

_Don't forget your belt satchel..._

Sam stumbled out of bed and went to her duffle bag. After relentless digging, she pulled out a belt with a small leather satchel attached to it.

She sat with her back to her new bed and opened the satchel's lid. Inside she found small glass vials and bottles, all of them filled with different colored liquid, potions Barbra had apparently packed before they had parted ways. Sam took some out and held them up to the light.

A note fell out of the satchel, set loose by the removal of the bottles.

_"Dear Ivy,_

_Couldn't let you go unprotected, could I? Just some basic protection-shield potions and ones designed to sap an enemy's energy. There are also one or two anti-ecto potions and a pouch of blood blossom seeds. You may need them; the research I did said there are a lot of ghosts there, the anti-ecto should help clean your clothes, and the Blood Blossoms make for very good anti-ghost remedies. The recipes are in the book, just in case. _

_Love you, _

_Batgirl._

Her large room felt too confining all of a sudden.

Sam grabbed a pair of dark green jeans, a dark purple sweater and her favorite pair of black joggers. She changed into her clothes quickly before putting on the belt-satchel and clipping the compass to one of her jeans' belt loops.

She gave her Circle of Five jacket a sorrowful look. It was too soon to even _think _about putting it on; she grabbed a black leather trench coat instead. She climbed out the window before shutting it very carefully from the outside and began her descent.

Sam thanked all the earth spirits and deities she knew for the ivy ridden latticework that covered the entire wall that she was now using to climb down. The moment Sam's feet hit the ground, she recognized the feeling. It was a pull; the natural instinct that all witches had to prepare for any paranormal and, in some cases, demonic attacks.

There was something odd about this pull, however. It was like it was calling specifically to her. The wind whispered in her ear, telling her she was fated to see what was causing the pull. Her feet started to move of their own accord.

She walked for a good ten minutes before she realized she had gone further than just down the road. Sam's eyes scanned the darkened sky when she noticed that bright flashes of light were flickering just beyond the tree line in the park.

"Damn." Sam shook her head, knowing that was exactly where the ruckus was coming from. She tried to tell herself to stay away and not get involved, but her witch's instinct to deal with the supernatural was too strong. It was a pull so powerful that she had no choice but to comply.

_Alright! Alright, I can't fight it. I'll go check it out. But that's it! I'm still not casting anymore. _

Sam's pace sped up and she stepped through the trees to see two battling figures fighting fifteen meters above the ground.

The fight was fast-paced. The smaller of the two was a white-haired youth, dressed in a black jumpsuit. His opponent was larger and reminded Sam of a bodybuilder with white skin and wispy green hair. His body seemed to be made out of metal.

The fight finished within moments of her arrival when the smaller white-haired fighter sucked the metal specter into what appeared, to Sam at least, to be a soup thermos. The remaining fighter fell slowly to the ground. Controlled, Sam realized, just like Barbra when she got her powers of levitation, not as powerful or consistent as that of the fighter's but still...

"He can fly," Sam spoke in a whisper, but the cold night air magnified her voice just enough to alert him to her presence. Sam doubted if he heard her exact words but he stood for a moment like a deer caught in headlights before he floated over to her. A foot off the ground, he moved slowly, cautiously, like he expected her to start screaming.

"U-uh, hi?" His voice echoed slightly - he sounded unsure as if he was still expecting the run and scream routine. Now that he was closer, Sam could see that he looked like a teenager, about seventeen, her age. Now that he right in front of her, he was kind of cute. In a spectral way. His messy snow-white hair flopped over bright neon green eyes. He had a lean build to him that she could easily admire when he wore that jumpsuit.

_Not that I want to...he's still a ghost. He could be troublesome for all I know. _

"Um, you shouldn't be out by yourself at night, 'specially around here - there are ghosts, you know," he lectured.

Sam had to refrain from rolling her eyes. "By definition, Sir, I'm not alone at the moment. Further, correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you a ghost?"

Sam mentally hit herself, she knew better than to be rude to supernatural beings. However, she could have sworn the corner of his mouth had turned up like he was amused, but was trying to hide it.

The ghost groaned in exasperation. "Yes, I'm a ghost. Would you like to run screaming in the other direction now?"

She gave him a smirk. "Let's just say I don't scare easily, ghost boy."

Her sisters had told her that her tongue would probably be the death of her. Right now she believed it. Time seemed to stretch. At first, he looked shocked. It was like he was trying to figure out why this foolish human was being so reckless. But his next actions surprised her the most.

He started laughing. He laughed so hard she doubted he knew he was floating higher and higher, in all her years as a witch she'd never seen a ghost laugh. He was an odd bird.

"You've either got a heck of a lotta guts or you really have no clue how dangerous the ghosts in this town, including me, are." His laugh subsided into quiet chuckles and he lowered himself once more, this time letting his feet make contact with the ground beneath. She could now see that he was a good head taller than her.

"Or...I just don't care." Sam knew she was in trouble the second he smirked. She was doomed. She knew and she didn't even need to see the future like Barbra.

"So no one warned you about me, hmm? Well, that's just a tad insulting. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Phantom, the most feared and dangerous ghost in Amity Park. Might I inquire as to the lady's name?" Phantom performed a mock bow to Sam.

"Request denied," Sam knew she was walking a very fine line. She had no idea what kind of being this ghost was, but it was strange that he was supposed to be the most dangerous ghost in Amity Park, and yet he made her feel safe. Somehow, he felt familiar, like an old friend she could say anything around and not get in trouble for it.

"Denied, huh? I think I can fix that." Before Sam could even blink he had ensnared her by the waist and pulled her to him, turning her as she went so he ended up behind her. A small gasp escaped Sam's lips as she felt her feet leave the ground. She clung to his being. The wind tugged her hair gently as Phantom carried her higher up into the sky.

"How about now?" Phantom's voice was laced with amusement. Sam grabbed hold of him, digging her short nails into his shoulders as hard as she could.

"Put me down. Now." Sam hissed at him through clenched teeth. Phantom laughed quietly.

"What's the matter... you're not scared now, are you?" Sam tightened her grip on his shoulder; she was getting annoyed at this arrogant ghost.

"Hardly, where are we going?" Sam had noticed the ground beneath them had not only been getting further away, but it was also changing.

"You're very perceptive, I'm just taking you for a short flight. Feel like answering my question now?"

"Sam. My name is Sam, are you satisfied? Will you put me down already?" Sam was beginning to feel light-headed; she hoped it was just from being up so high.

"Sure, we're here now." Sam blinked in surprise. Phantom had flown her back to her Gramms house.

"You already knew exactly who I was, didn't you?" Cold pins and needles flowed over her body as Phantom phased them both through her bedroom window.

"It's my town. I like to know the new faces, especially ones as pretty as yours." Phantom flirted as he placed her gently on her floor. Sam, with pink cheeks, spun around to face him, but he had already phased back outside. He floated just outside her window, smirking at her. She walked over to the window and opened it, leaning out slightly.

"Jerk." Sam blew a raspberry at him before pulling herself back in. She slammed the window shut, followed by the curtains.

She could still hear him laughing quietly as he flew away. Sam shook her head as she got ready to go back to bed.

"A ghost with a sense of humor, just my luck."


	4. Chapter 4

Pancakes?

Why could Sam smell pancakes?

There had been no fight recently and Haley only ever made pancakes after a big fight.

_"Pancakes are gorge food. We work until we drop, then we gorge on pancakes."_

That had been her philosophy since they'd met, so why?

Sam slowly opened her eyes and an unfamiliar room met her sight. Of course, she was in Amity Park; which meant it wasn't Haley downstairs in the kitchen cooking pancakes. Suddenly, with a rush of horrid memories, her excitement in having pancakes plummeted to feeling downright sick at the thought of the damn things.

Sun was filtering through Sam's open window along with a soft breeze. She could have sworn she closed both the windows and her curtains last night. Sam rolled over to face the door. It was open just a crack but Sam knew she had definitely shut it last night before bed.

_It was probably just Gramms. _She thought to herself as she rolled out of bed.

Sam threw on a pretty silk black kimono robe over the tank top and panties she slept in. After tying her hair in a bun, she sauntered downstairs to find a most unexpected sight.

"What are you doing here?" Right there in her Grandmother's kitchen was Danny, the boy from yesterday who had helped with the bags. He was dressed in the same hoodie as yesterday, same sneakers too. He did have a blue shirt on though.

"Hey! I-..." As soon as he turned around, Danny's bright grin dropped with a light shade of pink growing a little on his face. His blue eyes widened at the sight of her in a robe.

He quickly cleared his throat. "I'm cooking pancakes, you want some?" He smiled at her briefly before flipping the pancake in the air and catching it in the pan.

"Do you live here or something?" Sam, eyeing him cautiously, slid onto one of the seats at the kitchen counter.

"Nope," was all he said. Sam tapped her fingers impatiently on the counter's black marble surface.

"So why are you here? Cooking pancakes? At seven in the morning? In my grandmother's house?" She gritted. Something about this situation aggravated her. Maybe it was his casual demeanor; like it was okay to be cooking in some else's kitchen.

"Because it's Saturday," he chirped. Or maybe it was because he thought _that _was a valid reason.

"Care to elaborate?"

Danny paused his cooking and looked at her.

"Um, hello? Saturday? C'mon, everyone knows Saturday morning means pancakes." Danny smiled at her again and went back to cooking pancakes.

Sam tapped her fingers against the countertop again. "So, why can't you have them at _your _house?"

Danny rolled his eyes. "Let's just say my kitchen isn't as good as her grandma's. My folks don't exactly cook a lot. And when they do, it...doesn't turn out well."

Sam quirked an eyebrow. "I see. So, how do you know my Gramms?"

Danny grinned as he stacked the flapjacks on a plate. "We met a few years ago," he explained as he brought them over to the counter and set them. "There was an...incident, and she helped us out, so we repaid her by helping out around the house with chores. In the end, she took a liking to us, so now we help out with the chores and shopping and stuff and Grammy Manson lets us study here."

"Who exactly is us? And why can't you study at home?"

"Us would be my older sister, Jazz, my best friend Tucker and myself. And let's just say my parents are ghost hunters. The house is generally in chaos, and Tucker's place, well there's too much techno-junk to move an inch without tripping over something," he continued with a childish smile. "Plus Grammy Manson makes awesome chocolate chip cookies."

Sam nodded her head, his explanation sounded reasonable enough, but...

"What was the incident and why are you making so many Pancakes?"

"There are so many pancakes because Jazz and Tucker are coming for breakfast, and then there's you and me and Gramm too. You do like pancakes, right?"

Sam's stomach churned. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to eat pancakes right now.

"And the incident?" Sam inquired.

Danny gave her an impish grin. His icy blue eyes gleaming at her. "It's not important."

Sam narrowed her eyes at him, her cheeks growing warm. What an odd bird.

Upon hearing the front door open and close, Sam swiveled in her chair.

Seconds later a young woman with strawberry-blonde hair dressed in a simple black sweater and a teal skirt walked through the kitchen door. Accompanying her was a slightly younger African-American boy wearing a pair of green army cargo pants and a yellow hoodie with a red beret on his head and a pair of glasses.

They froze the second they saw the pretty black-haired girl sat at the counter. Behind Sam, Danny smiled and gave a quick wave to the two new people.

"Hey, guys! This is Sam. Sam, this is Jazz and Tucker," Danny greeted brightly as he smiled at her.

Jazz smiled at her, too. Her light teal colored eyes gave off a very motherly gleam. She calmly walked over to Sam and reached her hand out to shake.

"It's nice to meet you, Sam. I'm Danny's sister, Jasmine, but everyone just calls me Jazz," she spoke very diplomatically.

Sam gave her an uneasy look but shook her hand anyway. "Likewise."

Tucker came up to her next and gave her flirtasous smirk. "And I'm Tucker, or Tuck, or TF...for Too Fine."

A shiver went down her back as Sam looked at him uncomfortably. "Are you hitting on me?"

"Well, I-..." Tucker tried to reply before Danny interjected.

"Tuck, she's Mrs. Manson's grandaughter," the blue-eyed boy pointed out, throwing a bit of look in his best friend's direction. "Best to keep your distance."

"Oh," Tucker's flirty confidence deflated before giving Sam a sheepish laugh. "Sorry, about that."

Sam rolled her eyes at him. "It's nice to meet you, too."

She got up off her seat at the counter and went into the kitchen to fetch the kettle.

Tea. Tea was _exactly _what she needed right now.

_Meow. _Sam looked down to see Nyx lovingly rubbing up against her legs.

Jazz and Tucker sat down at the kitchen table, ready to dig into the pancakes Danny had made.

Danny, himself, couldn't help, but let his eyes follow Sam's form into the kitchen.

It must be the robe she had dressed in.

"So, Sam," Jazz said, always the conversation starter. "Where are you from?"

Sam didn't look up from her the loose tea she expertly brewed. The sweet smell of licorice met her nose. "New Orleans; I just got in last night."

"New Orleans? Cool!" Danny chimed in. "Always wanted to go there. I would be a nice change."

"Seriously," Jazz said. "No daily ghost attacks."

Sam literally had to stifle her laughter. Danny quirked an eyebrow at her.

"You good?"

She turned and gave him an innocent smile. "Oh, yeah, just a tickle in my throat."

"We still going to the mall today?" Jazz asked.

Tucker groaned. "We made _plans_ to go to the mall today?"

"Yes, Tuck," Danny said as he came over to the table. "We have to get school supplies."

"No!" Tucker cried in sorrow. "You just had to remind me, man!"

Rolling her eyes, Jazz ran her finger through her long hair. "Grow up, Tucker. It's not the end of the world."

"No, just the end of summer and that's just as bad!" Tucker whined.

Danny turned from their bickering over to Sam, who was bringing over a piping hot teapot of sweet-smelling tea and a teacup.

She sat down next to him at the table, tuning out Tucker and Jazz's argument as well.

"That smells good," Danny spoke. The sweet smell taunted his senses. "What is it?"

"Egyptian Licorice with honey," Sam answered quietly. It felt so strange, sitting at a table with a bunch of strangers when no less than a day ago she was standing in a graveyard with someone who considered a sister, looking over the grave of another one of their sisters. Talk about culture shock.

The discomfort she felt wasn't subsiding, despite having her favorite tea in her system. Before she realized it, she found herself staring into the reflective surface of her tea. Her eyes became glazed over and the entire world around her became nulled to her senses. The image of a pair of blood-red eyes flashed in her head.

Danny noticed her dazed look. His brows furrowed in slight concer0n.

"Sam?" His voice tugged her out of her vision. She felt him place a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"

Sam shook her head. "Y-yes, thank you." She delicately brushed a loose lock of hair back behind her ear.

It had been so long since she's ever had a vision, she didn't even notice she was having one.

Danny's gaze lingered on her but was quickly interrupted.

"Sam?" Jazz questioned. "Would you like to join us? Danny mentioned that you would be coming to school with us."

Jazz and Tucker spoke in unison, a sly look crossing their faces. The feeling of discomfort was quickly turning into an impending doom-type feeling. The same kind she had felt last night when she had been speaking to Phantom; she doubted this scenario was going to end quite as well.

Gramm Manson had come down to breakfast just as the four had finished setting the table and cooking the food. The table was laden with pancakes and syrups and all kinds of spreads for pancakes including smooth peanut butter, Sam's favorite. The table had been quiet for most of the meal until Grandma Ida happily told Sam that her enrollment at Casper High was all settled.

Of course, she was delighted to let Sam accompany Danny, Tucker, and Jazz to go get school supplies. She was happy that they were welcoming Sam so well. Despite Sam's hesitation, Ida knew it was what she needed.

Danny and Sam were behind a counter, separated from Jazz and Tucker. A strange creature that looked like a woman, floated in the air at the center of the food court, the other shoppers had run the second the creature appeared.

"So, does this happen often around here?" Sam asked Danny quietly. Danny nodded.

"Once or twice a day, when it's quiet, five or six is busy." Sam looked at him.

"So this thing-"

"Ghost." Danny glanced at Sam as he corrected her.

"Right, ghost. What's its weaknesses, powers, tactics? Give me a run down."

"Okay, not sure I can give you tactics or weaknesses but powers I can do." Danny pulled out what looked like a compact camera from his back pocket, took a picture of the ghost and showed Sam the screen.

"Powers include; pyro-kinesis, levitation, intangibility and invisibility. Pyro-kinesis? That's her main power? How do we get rid of her?"

Sam noticed Danny give her a strange look.

"We? Oh no, you do not; I get rid of the ghost."

"Okay Mr. Hero-Complex, how do you get rid of the ghost?"

"I stick her in the... oh crap," Danny looked around quickly, clearly worried.

"What, what did you lose?" Sam put her hand on Danny's shoulder, tingles shooting up her arm. She removed her hand and looked at it, last time her hand had tingled like that, her witch senses had been telling her the person she was touching was her innocent. Sam rolled her eyes; she would never escape this craziness.

"You remember that green and white thermos I was carrying? It's called the Fenton Thermos and it's used to catch and hold ghosts. I think I may have dropped it."

"Wow, you must feel stupid." Danny glared at her before rubbing his hand over his eyes. Sam stuck her head up above the counter, scanned the room and ducked back down just in time to avoid getting hit by a fireball thrown by the ghost.

"It's over by the plants to our... right? Facing it the plants are to our left but since were facing away from it it's to our right."

"Thanks." Danny stood up and Sam pulled him back down a split second before another fireball flew overhead.

"You'll need a distraction if you even hope of getting over there."

"Yeah, I noticed that. Just one problem - where are we going to get a distraction?"

"Oh, over the years I've found I can be very distracting. How long would it take you to get to the thermos?"

"Not long, five seconds to reach it maybe another five to get the ghost in, if she's distracted. Wait a minute, what are you planning?"

"I'll give you the distraction you need, you've got ten seconds."

As Sam leapt over the counter and instantly started dodging fireballs, she was struck by a sudden sense of déjà vu. This was not the first time she had dodged fireballs, she'd been dodging them quite often since the Circle of Five first started saving innocents, although the first time she had been hit and was not nearly as agile as she was now. Selene and Haley had pushed Sam, Zoey and Barbra into taking gymnastics with them and five years of it had paid off. Sam flipped onto a table, a fireball just missing the edges of her skirt. Sam was very happy about her habit of wearing leggings or shorts underneath her dresses. Sam paid no attention to the room around her; relying instead on her witches sense to guide her, and help her dodge the attacks without running into anything.

At the edge of her hearing Sam heard a sound that reminded her of the numerous portals she had encountered, and a scream, she dodged one final fireball and opened her eyes. She was perched rather dangerously on a sign in front of one of the food stalls, a few feet away was Danny looking up at her with a strange look on his face, the ghost nowhere in sight. Sam shrugged at Danny as if to say, 'What?' and flipped off the sign onto the ground. Danny continued to give her that look.

"Five years of gymnastics." Was all she said as way of explanation. Danny's expression changed, he was willing to believe that.

"It did you good, that was amazing. I don't think I've ever seen anyone move like that before."

"What, you don't watch the gymnastics on TV? I told you I was good at being distracting." Sam gave him a sort of half smile.

"You're not hurt are you?" Sam shook her head and looked him over.

"What about you, Mr. Hero-Complex?"

"Fine, I think we should go find Jazz and Tucker now, they have our shopping." Danny looped his arm through Sam's and promptly began to drag her in the direction they had last seen Jazz and Tucker headed. Under normal circumstances Sam would have slapped Danny upside the head for not only touching but dragging her, but he was her innocent until proven otherwise, and truth be told he was kinda adorable, in a goofy-hero-complex kinda way.


	5. Chapter 5

After the incident on Saturday at the mall, the weekend progressed in a quiet manner.

Sam spent Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday in her room looking through her album. However, when she wasn't doing that, she was out in the backyard to pick up the pieces of her poor Gramms' garden. She was mostly just tearing out the dead stuff and enriching the soil again. Without magic. What she would plant in place was what she was still contemplating.

When Monday came around, Sam was filled with a strange sense of dread. And not the typical dread that comes with Mondays. It was heavy. Like her bones had been replaced with thousands of pounds of stone. And there was the most uncomfortable tingle on her left side.

Maybe after what had happened to Zoey less than four weeks ago, she was still in shock. Maybe it was because she was going to be the "New Girl"; whoever felt great about being the new kid in class?

Or maybe...a rift had reopened somewhere? It wouldn't surprise her, but it certainly would infuriate her.

Sam shook her head. Ridiculous.

These worries were unfounded; she just wasn't used to this town or its people...or its ghosts.

After breakfast with Gramms, Sam left for her first day of school.

Somehow, she found Danny waiting for her at her gate unsurprising. The two of them walked to school in comfortable silence.

It was strange; she felt comfortable enough around him to let her guard down and be lost in her thoughts. And she's only known him for a few days.

Sam stopped at the entrance, starring at the foreign building that would become a big part of her daily life. Danny walked two feet before he realized she was no longer beside him.

"You okay Sam?" Danny stepped closer, concern clearly marked his face. "It's not that bad. As long as you're not getting stuffed into lockers." He thought back to the incident at the food court, though. It was quite obvious Sam could handle herself.

Sam took a deep breath and unconsciously pulled a bit of calming energy from the earth. She felt the soothing sensation prickled from her toes to the tip of her nose. It was like a warm hug. It didn't stop the frustrating itch in her side though.

If she could fight demons, banshees and a goddamn succubus from France, then she could damn well go to a new high school.

"I've had my share of bullies in New Orleans," she spoke icily. "They all just met the end of my boot."

Danny chuckled and gave her a gaze of amusement.

"I won't doubt you on that. C'mon, I'll walk you to your, and inevitably my, doom." Danny linked his arm with Sam's as he led her into the school.

Once again, no trace of agitation from this boy touching her.

—

"Ugh, check out the new girl. Do you see what she's wearing? Can you say poor Wednesday Adams?"

Sam had only been in class five seconds and she was already starting to loathe this annoying Hispanic harpy that Danny had earlier identified as Paulina Sanchez.

Sam checked her outfit. There was nothing wrong with the baggy black jeans and the dark green sweater she wore. She also had her artifact watch hanging around her neck. Sam could make it look like Paulina's hair was falling out with just a quick glamor spell, but since she was no longer casting, she would have to settle for her second most fearsome weapon, her sharp tongue.

"I've heard better wit from toads. Next time, bring a textbook, maybe I'll actually hear something intelligent out of you," Sam waved off Paulina dismissively, not even caring about the war she had just fueled.

Paulina narrowed her blue eyes at her in fury.

"Whatever, goth-geek," she huffed before she and her little group sashayed off to began some sort of mindless gossip swap.

A dark-skinned girl, dressed in yellow leaned over to Sam. "As entertaining as that was, you probably just started a war with the School's Queen Bee."

Sam rolled her eyes. "As if I care."

"You should," the unknown girl stated carefully. "She could make life hell for you."

"That harpy knows nothing of hell..." Sam muttered, crossing arms.

Not hearing what Sam had said, the girl in yellow stuck out her hand for Sam to shake, a sisterly smile on her face. "I'm Valerie."

Valerie's grip was strong. Sam noticed the slight callous' on her hands first then the manicured nails and finally the fact that both their thumbs were on top. Valerie had only just met Sam and already Valerie was seeing her as an equal. It was the same comradery that common among her and her coven sisters.

Sam quickly pushed such emotions aside.

"Sam, nice to meet you." Sam felt the corners of her lips tug upwards slightly.

It was then their teacher walked in. Mr. Lancer, balding with a potbelly; he reminded Sam of a Kurash beast that she had met in the Library of Tore.

It troubled Sam that even though she was attempting to lead a normal life she kept drawing parallels to her old life; demon-filled, spell casting glory days.

"Alright, class, today we're going to continue our discussion on Shakespeare's Macbeth. We last left off at the beginning of act 4," Lancer began. "We open the act with the 3 witches who gave the premonition of Macbeth becoming King..."

Well into the lesson, Sam was startled out of her musings a few minutes later as Danny re-entered the classroom. He had left abruptly a few moments before Sam's confrontation with Paulina. At first, she thought nothing of it, but then it became curious that he had been gone so long, even for a bathroom break. Even more curious was the exchange of looks between Danny and Mr. Lancer. Whatever Danny had been doing, it seemed that Mr. Lancer already knew, seeing as he didn't scold Danny for missing a chunk of class.

Sam was actually quite athletic.

Especially when it was chasing after a demon or scaling down the side of a building in a daring escape from boredom, but this was just ridiculous. High school P.E was the very bottom of the sporting barrel. The trash-talking in the changing room had been bad enough; luckily Sam had gotten the hang of changing quickly, which meant she had been in and out before the other girls had noticed her single remaining scar or even the small pentacle tattoo in the middle of her back.

"So Sam," Valerie started as the two girls stretched. "Did you do much sport back in New Orleans?"

Oh joy, an inquiring mind.

"I suppose." Sam shrugged.

Valerie gave her a look that screamed, "Don't be aloof. It annoys me!"

"Alright, I'll admit I did my fair share of running, jumping, climbing and checkers."

"Checkers isn't a sport." Valerie quirked her brow.

"Oh yes, it is." Sam gave Valerie a grim smile as she remembered the event two and a half years ago which had ended in Haley nearly losing an arm.

"Okay Sam, if you say so."

The girls finished their warm-ups just as the rest of the female portion of the class came out of the changing rooms. Sam and Valerie took off for the outdoor track, three laps as ordered by the coach.

"Hey Valerie, what do you know about the ghosts in this town?"

Sam looked at Valerie from the corner of her eye as they ran side by side.

"Finally someone else who can run and chat at the same time, none of these pansies are ever up for conversation," Valerie snickered.

Running and talking had been a requirement for spell casting on the run, another useful habit from her witch days.

"As for the ghosts, what do you want to know?"

"I've heard about a ghost called Phantom, who is he?" Sam thought she noticed Valerie falter slightly and her curiosity grew.

"Phantom is... hard to explain. He's a very unique case, compared to other ghosts," Valerie hesitantly explained.

"How so?"

"Well, most ghosts have obsessions that are blatantly obvious," said Valerie. "Phantom showed up pretty much out of the blue with the rest of the ghosts."

"So?" Sam inquired.

"He's shown no real signs of even having an obsession, unlike the other ghosts. Some theorize his obsession is protecting Amity Park, though."

"What do you guys think?" Sam asked.

Valerie let out a short laugh.

"I'm honestly not too sure," she said. "I've heard several different opinions on him. Some think he's a savior, and others say he's a menace. I personally think that while he may want to protect this town, it doesn't mean he won't take a chance to harmlessly mess with someone. It seems like the sort of thing a Ghost Prince might do."

This time it was Sam who faltered slightly.

"Ghost Prince?"

"Well, "King", technically. He overthrew the old Ghost King, and thank goodness for that because Dark Pariah was a tyrannical psycho," Valerie shivered. "Every time someone calls him the King, he always requests to be called a prince. Apparently "King" makes him feel old."

The two girls looked at each other quickly before they started laughing.

Sam found it odd. She hadn't laughed in quite a while. How could she be laughing? It didn't seem right and yet, with all the horrors she and her sisters had seen, they had learned to recover. Sam couldn't see how she could recover from Zoey's death. Maybe it was the dream, the one in which Zoey had told her she was becoming a guardian. Perhaps it was acting as a balm.

"Hey, earth to Sam. Come in Sam." Sam looked to her right to see a pair of icy blue eyes.

Oh, gods, he was everywhere.

"Hello, Danny," Sam spoke softly.

"Nice deadpan," Valerie said from her left. "You ok Sam? You went kinda quiet there."

"And just ran a quarter of the track on autopilot," Danny added. "Jeez, and I thought Jazz was an overachiever."

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry." Sam shook her head slightly and walked off towards the locker rooms.

The class was over.

Sam was thankful P.E had been the last class of the day. She just wanted this day to be over and the tingle in her side to go away. In fact, screw tingle, screw itch, it was straight-up burning!

Sam waited by the indoor bleachers for dismissal after she changed back into her clothes. Most of the class was out of the change rooms already and their teacher looked ready to let them go. The burning in her side was unbearable, but now that she was actually paying some attention to it...it felt very familiar.

Sam grazed her fingers under her shirt down her side. That's when she remembered it; her scar was on her left side! And wasn't just any ordinary irritation; it was a warning! She got it from...

The gym doors blasted open!

Sam's head whipped around, hoping against all hope she had been wrong.

The rest of the class and the teacher took off in the other direction, all screaming at the top of their lungs.

The residence of Amity Park had suffered from ghost attacks for some time now. So, as long as Sam had been a witch, it amazed her how they could be scared so easily by what could very well be another ghost.

That was the catch, however. It wasn't a ghost. No, it was something much worse.

The beast was a large being. The poor gym door was no long there. Just a giant 25 ft tall hole in the wall.

It had an arched back and long skeletal limbs with taut flesh stretched over the bones. Yet, its skin was black as coal. It rested on the balls of its feel and supported its weight on its knuckles. The horns atop its head resembled broken antlers and the long, twisted, knarly smile on its face would give Marvel's Venom shivers. Its eyes burned more horrifically than the very fires of Hell.

It was a Heat Fiend, the only demonic creature to ever leave a scar on Sam. The very scar rested on her left side right now. The scar burning like that was her body warning her of a Heat Fiend or any of its kind running amock. Unfortunately, Sam only had protection and energy-sapping potions on her; any sort of actual defense she had was currently locked away in her bedroom.

What a great first day in her new school...

The Heat Fiend floated toward her speaking in its demonic tongue.

"So, the little nymphling is all alone? Where are the witch sisters now, nymphling? Left you to burn all alone did them? Much joy in snacking on your crispt corpse." The Fiend began to laugh; the sound filled Sam with a primal fear.

The scar she bore now might be small but the original damage... she couldn't even think back on that day without feeling nauseous. She would have died if not for...the Other.

She could not dwell on the past now, now she had to figure out how to destroy it. The demon moved closer to Sam, but she was rooted in place from fear. She hated the feeling. Heat Fiends were one of the few creatures that could hold Sam in her place out of pure terror.

The Fiend's volcanic hot air pocket was drying out her skin. She had to move. She had to put distance between herself and the Fiend until she could create a spell to destroy it.

Screw your new life! You're not going to have any life if you don't act!

The damned creature let out a wicked snicker. "The fear of a nymphling, sweet, lustrous fear. Goes good with their charred remains. Eat you, eat humans, then eat your trees I think."

Sam hated the way Heat Fiends spoke. The made strange sounds and had a strange grammar.

The fiend reached for Sam and she could feel her body become dangerously hot and was getting difficult to move; her mind slowed down and her thoughts became hazy. She didn't entirely register the green light blast that hit the fiend's air pocket; she didn't entirely register falling backwards into the arms of a certain white-haired ghost or him carrying her outside.

Sam's consciousness ebbed back slowly. She felt like a flower that got too much light; she couldn't function properly and couldn't survive. Sam stayed in a semi-sleep until she felt a cold hand stroke the side of her face gently. She forced her eyes to open and when she did, there was a pair of concerned bright green eyes staring back at her.

"Phantom?" She could barely speak, her throat was so dry and it hurt to even breathe through her mouth.

Sam quickly took in her surroundings and she realised Phantom had brought her into the girls' locker room.

"Sam, are you alright?" the spectral echo in his voice was even louder in the empty locker room.

"Mm," Sam could barely answer him. She so focused on the hand he still had on her cheek. It was so cool against her feverish skin; it made her want to cry. Thank goodness ghost didn't generate heat.

She felt him gently place her on the cool tile, relieving a bit of her skin from the continuous burning.

"Don't worry, Sam," he said confidently. "I'll take care of this...whatever it is. And then I'll get you to a doctor." She watched him stand to get ready to fly off to fight.

"Heat fiend..." she croaked, grabbing the spandex on the leg of his suit.

"Huh?" He gave her a confused glance. He crouched down to hear her.

"A Heat Fiend," she repeated. "You have to cool the air around it then attack." Speaking was a strain on Sam's tired body that she blacked out for a few seconds, only rousing in time to see Phantom phase out the doors, probably to follow her instructions and get rid of the monster.

Sam weakly dragged herself off the floor and crawled to the showers. She didn't have the strength to stand. Witch or not, she was still human, and getting as close to a Heat Fiend as she had without a protective shield was bordering on life-threatening!

Sam made it into the showers and turned the cold water on, full blast and not caring if she still had her clothes on. A few years ago, after the first time she had fought a Heat Fiend, Sam had learned to regenerate from wounds, and while she couldn't regenerate limbs (which, thankfully, was never anything she had to worry about), she could absorb water straight through her skin. It acted as instant-hydration and purification against the blackest of magick. Sam lay under the water for about ten minutes and all the while could feel the crippling heat leave her skin. She turned the water off, wearily stood up, her clothes thoroughly soaked and heavy as she exited the showers.

That's when she found Phantom floating right in front of the showers, waiting for her.

"U-um, Sam, what are you doing?" he unsurely asked, planting his feet solidly on the floor. "You're soaked."

"I nearly got cooked alive, what do you think I'm doing?" Sam huffed.

She crossed her arms across her chest and had just managed to walk past Phantom to find a towel until he got a hold of her arm to stop her and had her turn to him.

"How did you know?" He asked, looking at her inquisitively.

Sam narrowed her eyes at him. "Know what?"

"That attacking thing will only work after the external air temperature has been lowered substantially."

""Substantially"? Didn't expect such a big vocabulary from you, your Highness?" She rolled her eyes.

Phantom stiffened at the title. "Who told you?"

"How to defeat the creature?"

"No, that I'm the Ghost Prince."

"Does it matter?" She replied. "Let go of my arm."

Phantom narrowed his gaze at Sam but did as she asked.

"Are you going to tell me or not?" He asked impatiently.

"I said it doesn't matter," she sneered. "It's that big a deal to me if you a Ghost...Prince...King? Whatever you are."

"No, not that. I mean how the hell you knew how to beat that thing!"

"Why do you jump around so much in your conversations? You must confuse a lot of people. Heck, I'm surprised you don't confuse yourself."

Sam glared at Phantom. Phantom glared at Sam.

He glared until he let his gaze trail over her figure. His firm glare changed to a look of amusement and fascination, and strangely enough a slight ghostly green blush across his cheeks.

"You know, you may wanna think about changing," he spoke slyly. "That shirt sure is clinging. Not that I'm complaining."

Sam's face glowed a bright pink. She continued her glare at him as he phased out of the locker room. "Pervert."


	6. Chapter 6

Hey, I'm so sorry about last chapter! I've fixed it, so you guys can go back and read it!

—-

Sam sat cross-legged on her bed, in clean, dry clothes, as she finished towel drying her hair which was still wet from the locker room incident earlier that afternoon. Nyx sat comfortably next to her.

Her photo album lay open in front of her again. It probably wasn't healthy, remembering the past so often she was almost living in it, but Sam, being Sam, didn't care.

What she did care about was that dream she had a few nights ago. Zoey was dead. The chances that the dream was a real message from Zoey and she really was becoming a guardian were slim to none at best.

Five years... They had known each other for five years. Almost four and a half of those years they had lived in the same house with the Barbra, Selene and Hayley. A witch sorority Hayley had called it. Hayley had always come up with wacky words and odd names for things; it had been part of her charm.

Briefly, Sam wondered if Selene felt the loss of Zoey, even if she didn't remember, did she still feel an unknown sorrow? Like she had lost a family member she never got the chance to know?

Maybe the amnesia had been a good thing for Selene. Maybe now that her 'real' family was finally taking notice of her, and now that she didn't have to worry about demons, maybe, just maybe, Selene would put her old thieving habits behind her. Sam was sure Selene would retain her super reflexes, although they might not be at the same level she had trained them to.

Sam shook her head to clear her thoughts, then hopped off the bed to do her practice stretches like she had been taught for so many years of gymnastics.

Her routine incorporated gymnastic stretches along with tai chi and Martial arts moves. The ability to defend themselves had been crucial to the girls; there were more than a few instances when their magic had been blocked and they'd had to rely on hand-to-hand. Man, did she have nostalgia bad.

Well, she wasn't the only one who had something bad.

She hadn't pictured Phantom as a pervert. Still, something felt familiar about him. Normally, she would open her witch's senses to him, but she had given up casting.

And yet, Danny was her charge and she had to protect him. What a dilemma she has found herself in.

Sam finished her stretches and climbed into bed, the energy required to regenerate had taken a lot out of her. She was asleep seconds after her head hit the pillow.

Sam was running. The beast was close behind her; she was drying out.

Witches, where were the witches? Weren't they supposed to protect magical creatures like herself, surely they didn't think a wood nymph beneath them.

Unless what the Heat Fiend had said was true: witches only look after their own.

It didn't matter, Sam had to get away. She had to lose the Heat Fiend before it followed her to the forest and her and the other wood nymphs that lived there.

Sam thought she heard her name being called. She ignored it as she made her way to the Safe Haven; a fountain with a garden surrounding it. It was one of the many secret entrances to the forest and the beast wouldn't be able to follow her.

She had just made it to the Safe Haven, her bare feet slapping against the cobblestone paths. She heard the Heat Fiend roar close behind her and voices shout a warning.

"SAM! GET DOWN!"

Sam let herself fall onto the grass as she turned around to see the danger coming at her a pillar of fire at her coming straight for her blasted by the beast. She felt the flames engulf her. Raging over her. Destroying her.

Sam lay on the ground writhing, wriggling, screaming, screeching and shrieking in absolute white-hot pain. She couldn't even focus on what was happening around her. She let the grass below absorb her and carry her into the growth network, Sh just let it's current pull her along, too lost in the pain to direct her travel. There was no way her body would ever recover completely from the damage even with her power of regeneration; her flesh had melted away, her muscles had charred, her blood had literally begun to boil in the intensity of the blaze. A Heat Fiend's burns were long-lasting, even if the flame is diminished, the feeling of boiled hot tar on your skin was the long term effect.

It felt like an eternity of pain before Sam became aware of the voice calling her. It was the Other. Her guidance. Her guardian. He pulled her to him and calm energy washed over her. Her pain faded away and she fell to the mercy of slumber.

When Sam awoke, a week had past and she was shocked to find her body had healed. Everything had been repaired and her skin was unblemished except for one small scar along the line of her ribs on her right side.

"It was difficult," A voice came in her mind, soft and fatherly, but still it startled Sam, "Repairing so much damage was not easy, but we did our best. Your body refused to let the scar be healed A good thing perhaps. It will serve as a warning next time such creatures are near." Sam scanned her surrounds looking for the one the voice came from; she just found herself drowning in foliage and flora, but no other living being was in sight.

"Thank you, for healing me," Sam said aloud still looking around, "Please, who are you?"

"I am like you. A part of the growth, yet separate from it," the fatherly voice said. "You are not normally so connected with the growth; it tells me you have been changed by others who are as you are now."

"That...that's right," she stammered. "The wood nymphs, I am a wood... no, I'm not, I was a witch...I think."

"Then that is what you must once more become. This is not your true form."

"But I'd lose the ability to move along the growth," she said in a sorrowful tone. "To go from place to place through the plant's network, how can I give that up?"

"You don't have to," the voice spoke. "A gift from us to you, because you help to protect us. We give you a tool, which will aid you. Your powers, they feel like mine, in time you would have developed this skill of moving through the growth naturally, but I bless you now. Do your duty, go home."

A force pushed Sam back into and along with the growth's network, spinning her and finally thrusting her out in a very familiar room.

Sam was disorientated to the point of nausea when her world shifted suddenly.

"I remember that day," a now very familiar voice said. "You fell out of that damn bonsai tree of yours. Right into the living room while the rest of us were doing our umpteen million and fourth location spell. We had no idea where you had gone. The fact that you were bare ass naked really didn't help, by the way."

Sam quickly recognized the back chamber of the Library of Tore. The same archaic look fireplace, the sam pillar upon pillars of books, and in the seat across from her, legs propped up on the table and giant book that she obviously wasn't reading sitting in her lap was Zoey.

"It wasn't my fault. The other couldn't heal clothes," Sam sat precariously on the arm of a sofa opposite Zoey.

"Never the less, you used spiritual transdimensional travel, the magical community would have never let that go had we not told them it was an accident. The trance was so powerful you carried your scars back with you. And of had your stark pale butt out for the world to see," Zoey snickered. "I wonder what this Danny boy of yours would have thought?"

"Oh," Sam groaned, slapping her forehead lightly. She then gave a humorless chuckle to herself."I get it now."

"Get what?" Zoey put her book down and sat up straight.

"I keep dreaming of you because of my guilt over what happened to you," Sam rolled her eyes. "This is me trying to make myself feel better. I only dreamed of the first time I met a Heat Fiend because one just showed up at my new school. The dream location of our conversation is the Library of Tore because I was also thinking about it today and you're asking what Danny thinks because I'm kinda starting to actually appreciate his company... or maybe I'm secretly suspicious of him because of the really long 'toilet' break. That's all this is. Just a dream."

"Hm," Zoey crossed her arms and looked thoughtfully at Sam.

"Your logic is sound for normal situations, dear sister Ivy, but since when have we ever been subject to normal situations? You know for a fact that when manipulating dreams, locations are easy to conjure if the person and or people have been thinking about said places, and by your own admission you were thinking about the library," Zoey explained. "As for Danny, you're feeling _more _than "appreciation" for hi-...wait, you said a heat fiend showed up at your new school today?"

"Yeah..." Sam answered wearily.

"Ok, Ivy, that's not possible. We shut the rift at the same time we banished the Daemons back to Hell. I remember time went wonky and I could see everything, probably because I was dead by then, but still, I remember seeing the rift close. Heat fiends can only come through the rifts between the Under-Hel and earth," Zoey shot out of her seat, a sense of urgency emanating from her. "A new rift must have opened, but how? When? You'd think the head honchos would have told me or let me know this sort of thing if they knew. What if they don't know?"

Sam watched Zoey pace backed forth fidgeting with her hand just as she had done so many times before.

"This means you are gonna have to find the new rift. Ivy," Zoey spoke firmly. "You might want to see what the book says on newly formed rifts. See if there's any way to detect them, scry out some allies. Oh, and Ivy you might want to go to market, see if any of the neutrals know anything. Do as much digging as you can."

Sam just shook her head. "No, hell no, I have my own issues to deal with, like a perverted little ghost." She stood with her hands clenched in tight fists, glaring at her dead friend, "Just because I'm dreaming you doesn't mean I'm going back to a life of demons and hexes and losing innocents. Hell, Zoey, I gave it up because you died."

"POISON IVY!" Zoey's voice boomed, startling Sam to sit back down. Her magick name echoing through the halls of the Library. "Casting is who you are. It's a part of you. You didn't choose it before. _It _chose you! You can't walk away from what you are! And as witches, we will never let an innocent die if we can prevent it. You took an _oath_! We will protect all who need protecting. It's our role in this life! I don't want you to go back on your word just because I died in order to reach my next destiny. My part in the prophecy has been completed."

Sam sat solemnly in the armchair, her eyes hidden under bangs.

Zoey sighed. "If you don't believe that this is anything more than a dream, then I'll send you a sign, okay?"

Still looking down, Sam nodded. "'Kay."

"And as for Phantom, I know exactly which ghost you're talking about, and, well, it's your own fault for magnifying his natural attraction to you," Zoey smiled playfully.

Sam finally looked up at Zoey as if she had grown two heads. "Zoey, what the hell are you talking about? I did no such thing!"

Zoey stalked over to Sam, placed her index finger on Sam's forehead, sending Sam right into another memory.

_"Beltane is the holiday of love and fertility! It would be only right that we use our magick to spread said love. Please Sam? Poison Ivy? Please join us, it'll be fun, I promise." _

_It was the first Beltane after the girls had received the book. Two months after they had all moved into the house Barbra's parents owned, but never used, and Hayley was pestering Sam into trying a love spell with the rest of the girls. Sam, being the independent type, was refusing, until Hayley started whining._

_"Fine! What do I do?" Sam let herself be dragged to the kitchen. _

_There, her other coven sisters sat around the table where a black cauldron sat._

_"Okay, first you write a spell saying what you what you guy to be like, you say it then you put it in the cauldron-" Hayley explained. _

_"We have an actual cauldron now?"_

_"-and then when all of the spells are in we light it on fire ok, easy." The blond stated gleefully. _

_Hayley sat Sam at the large round table the girls had bought as a house warming present to themselves. _

_The other three were already there writing there spells. Haley slid into the seat next to Sam and smiled encouragingly; Sam tried to smile back and failed miserably. She just looked at the pad of lined paper before her. She was only thirteen for goodness sake; she didn't know what she was looking for in a guy! In fact, how could any of them know that! The oldest one among them was Selene, she beat Barbra by two months, and Selene was only fourteen! _

_Sam decided that, with all the demons and things she'd seen in the past two months since accepting the duty of a member of the Circle Five, she didn't really need a guy right now. So, she just let her imagination take over and came up with characteristics for a guy that couldn't possibly be real. Just to humor her sisters' little love game. _

_"Ok," Haley asked suddenly, "Everyone got their spells? Zoey can start and we'll go clockwise around the table."_

_Everyone nodded. The others read their spells and Sam was interested to know what sort of people the others were interested in. _

_Finally, it was Sam's turn. She drew a breath and began to read._

_"My perfect partner is:_

_Someone who can handle my world_

_And show me the stars,_

_A man who will fight for me_

_And shares my battle scars._

_A man who can match me_

_And makes me smile,_

_Wild, careful, open and mysterious_

_He can stand me for more than a while._

_Hair black and white_

_Eyes blue and green,_

_Treats me like a warrior_

_And treats me like a queen."_

_Sam threw her paper into the cauldron, which they apparently did have and watched as Haley lit the contents._

_Beep! Beep! Beep!_

Sam woke with such a start when her alarm clock went off. She shot straight into a sitting position. Nyx was startled awake by the sudden movement.

Sam's mind reeled. Her memory of the Heat Fiend attack and her guilt dream of Zoey promising a sign she could understand, but her memory that Beltane spell?

"What the Hell does that have to do with anything?"


	7. Chapter 7

The first sign came that Tuesday morning, quite unexpectedly. Sam was just sitting at the table eating breakfast and enjoying some morning tea with her Gramm until the radio blared to life.

_I don't believe you know me although you know my name_

_I don't believe the thoughts I have are only mine to claim_

_I don't believe that magic is only in the night_

_I don't believe I'd love somebody just to pass the time-_

The radio blared with static for a moment before continuing.

_I don't believe that beauty will ever be replaced_

_I don't believe a masterpiece will ever match your face_

_The joker's always smiling in every hand that's dealt_

_I don't believe that when you die your presence isn't felt._

When the radio went dead altogether, Sam just exchanged looks with her Gramm.

Sam excused her self from the table quickly.

Zoey...

She knew Zoey would choose that song if it even _was _Zoey. This could all be the games of a demon sending her those dreams, messing with her head. But, if that was the case, how would a demon know about that song?

After throwing on some skinny jeans, a large shirt and her artifact, brushing her hair and teeth, giving her Gramm a hug goodbye, Sam grabbed her aging spider bag and headed out the door, determined to ignore this message.

Danny was waiting for her again, but today he was accompanied by Tucker who was, as usual, fiddling with his PDA, which Sam suspected was somehow grafted to him.

"Morning, Sam!" Danny greeted, his blue eyes focused on her. She may be imagining it, but it almost seemed like he was carefully searching for something on her. Whatever it was, he seemed relieved to not have found it.

She smiled at him anyway. "Hey, guys."

The three of them continued their one their way.

Just as they reached school, Valerie had jogged over to them. They began to discuss about the day's upcoming when the second sign came.

Tucker's PDA sent out the most awful static before the second song began to play.

_And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_

_Or the moment of truth in your lies_

_When everything feels like the movies_

_Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

_'Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am._

Tucker looked at the device in his hands warily. "Technus must be on the loose again."

"Technus?" Sam asked in confusion.

"He's a ghost who manipulates technology," Valerie explained.

"And, my arch-nemesis," Tucker added, glaring at the PDA, probably hoping said techy ghost could hear him.

Sam glanced at Danny; he was unusually quiet about the subject. He had a look of worry and uncertainty.

Sam recognized that face. She'd seen it on her sisters' faces several times. Hell, she'd probably worn it, too.

Over the years the girls had dealt with the police a quite few times, especially when a demonic serial killer was on the loose. That look on Danny's face was the look the girls got when they heard the police's theories and knew, not just suspected, but knew that the police were wrong.

Why would Danny have the same air of worry shrouding him? What did he know that made him positive it wasn't this Technus? Her charge was turning out to a bit of an enigma.

The bell rang and the group of four rushed to class. The day continued on as normal, until fifth period.

The third sign came sometime during her English class with Mr. Lancer. The PA crackled to life and the third song poured from it into the classroom.

_Everywhere I go_

_Every smile I see_

_I know you are there_

_Smiling back at me_

_Dancin' in moonlight_

_I know you are free_

_'Cause I can see your star_

_Shining down on me._

Once more the static crackled on the airwaves before silence took over once again, only to be interrupted seconds later by the class's uproar.

Theories flew around the classroom, most involving the ghost, Technus, that the others had mentioned that morning.

There was no doubt about it. No demon or ghost could have possibly known to use, not just those songs, but those verses. Even the song during breakfast, the chorus had been cut exactly like Zoey's song mix.

Years ago, Zoey had taken her favorite verses from her three favorite songs and cut them into her own mix. It had been the first thing on her iPod.

_Then...it...it must be Zoey...! _

Sam felt like a world of weight was being lifted off her shoulders. If Zoey was still alive, in some shape or form, then the Circle Five still existed and Sam still had her duty.

Sam smiled; her world suddenly felt more fitting, more clear. She thought about calling Barbra to tell her the news when her gaze caught Danny, Tucker, and Valerie in a huddle.

With the resuming of her duty and no fear of her powers, Sam tuned into their conversation with ease, filtering out the background noise as only a witch could.

The conversation came into clarity as Mr. Lancer walked over to the trio and crouched down by their tables. An uncomfortable act in his slacks, Sam was sure.

"So what's going on? Is it that Technus fellow again?" Lancer asked.

Danny shook his head.

"I don't know if it's even a ghost. My ghost sense hasn't gone off, and... that thing in the gym yesterday, the one that nearly killed Sam, it wasn't a ghost. Actually..." Danny trailed off. Uncertainty was clear as a bell in his tone. Like he was out of his element.

"Actually...?" Valeria prompted.

"Sam called it a heat fiend," Danny confessed.

_What?_

They all looked at each other in confusion.

"Sam? As in Miss Manson?" Lancer quirked.

"Yep," Danny replied with a nod.

_What the hell? _

That didn't make any sense. She'd told Phantom about the Heat Fiend, not Danny. Danny wasn't even there.

She kept her self from jumping when the four of them looked over at her. She quickly turned away from them to hide the shocked and slightly confused expression on her face.

—

After school, Sam rushed out of the building, ignoring the calls of Danny, Tucker, and Valerie. She broke into a sprint a block from the school, relieved that she had the whole sidewalk to herself.

Now that she has returned to her true witchy self, it was time for Sam to seek out answers. A Heat Fiend just showing up out of nowhere was just _too _suspicious.

Sam made it home in almost record timing, running up to her room she instantly began to riffle through her belongings, frantically searching for the first item that had ever been given to her by a demon of any sort. The one item that would let her get to her destination: The Market.

—

_"I AM THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA!" Kalush's voice boomed through the corridors of the temple. The girls exchanged looks before desperately trying their hardest to stifle their laughter._

_"WHAT AMUSES YOU, MORTALS?" Anger oozed from the ten-foot, silver-eyed Daemon, his voice booming like thunder, shaking the earth around him. _

_A year after they had received the book the girls had fought a lot of different rogue creatures, including demons, but Kalush was the first Daemon they had ever met._

_"I'm sorry but," Sam snorted as the others lost control and burst out laughing. Hell, Haley had laughed so hard she fell over. "You called yourself 'the alpha and the omega'."_

_Kalush's silvery gaze threatened to pierce right through her. _

_"Come on, that is just so cliché, I mean, how can you expect us to take you seriously enough to vanquish, sorry." Sam tried to look serious and failed miserably._

_Kalush's demonic form began to glow and the girls sobered immediately, taking up fighting stances, ready to attack or dodge. The light coalesced and formed a solid shield between him and the girls. Sam shut her eyes and opened her senses, feeling and seeing the area with her third-eye, a trick the others had not quite mastered yet. Sam felt the light dissipate and tentatively opened her real eyes. Sam's jaw dropped at the sight before her._

_"Kalush?" She asked warily._

_"Sam," Haley croaked "I-I can't see..." The rest of her coven was suffering the problem. They must not have shut their eyes in case Kalush attacked. _

_But surely the light had not been bright enough to blind them._

_"Human eyes can't handle the intensity of the light's frequency."_

_Sam glared at the boy now standing in Kalush's place._

_"Can their eyes be fixed?" Sam hissed as she took in the boy's appearance. He wore black slacks, and a black vest, but remained shirtless underneath. His hair was a silvery-white and his eyes were the same demonic quicksilver Kalush's were. As handsome as he was, Sam knew that beauty on the outside meant nothing. He chortled._

_"You and your sisters threatened to vanquish me. I'm going to ignore saying I wasn't worth it," he snapped. "Tell me, Vivasha, what makes you think I would help you or tell you anything that could in any way, shape or form result in a desirable outcome for you?" The boy in front of her could only be Kalush's human form, every Deamon has one. He walked forward until he was only centimeters away from Sam. She didn't dare lower her guard. _

_"Because I still have the vanquishing potion," she sneered. "And if you don't tell me, I will put you in a time shatter halfway through you vanquish."_

_"Eternal perpetual vanquish," Kalush smirked and leaned closer, Sam refused to even flinch._

_"That's demonically cruel, Vivasha." Kalush purred as his eyes scanned Sam's face. She tried to move back only to find herself stuck in place._

_"You should have read that little book of yours more carefully, Vivasha," he whispered. "The "a" in my species name is not a mistake; it puts me in a whole other ballpark from even the most dangerous of demons. You can't vanquish me with a little potion; none of my kind can be vanquished." Kalush stroked Sam's cheek with the back of his hand; Sam tried with every fiber of her being, every ounce of power she had to swat his hand away, but to no avail._

_"There's a tincture made from ColdWarp, a plant that can be easily bought at the Demon's Market, it can cure their sight," Kalush stepped back casually gesturing to the four girls behind Sam who were also held in paralysis. Keeping his voice low he continued._

_"The recipe should be in that book of yours, this will grant you access to the market but I've been out of the game for a while so I don't know what the current asking price is. Good luck Vivasha." Kalush, with a smirk planted firmly across his face, threw a golden ring on the ground at Sam's feet. He released his hold on the girls, and before Sam realized it, Kalush was gone leaving only the entry ring._

—-

Sam opened a drawer and there on top of the book was the entry ring Kalush had given her so long ago.

To this day, she still had no idea what Vivasha meant. All she knew was that it was ancient Daemon tongue and when the creatures at The Market had found out Kalush had called her, that they were more than willing to help her out.

Before slipping on the entry ring, Sam checked her clothes, artifacts and her potion pouch. The Market was neutral territory, mostly harmless, but you could never tell who or what might be slithering about.

She went for the door, before pausing. Once again, she turns to her desk chair to see her Circle Five jacket, but instead of shunning it, she reaches for it. The cotton fabric was soothing and gave the same sense of security she got from her sisters. Sam smiled and proudly threw the jacket on, back where it belonged.

Sam snuck down the stairs and peered into the kitchen to see her Gramm and two other elderly ladies sitting at the table with her. It looked like they were playing cards and chatting. Sam smiled and tip-toed out the front door.

She didn't even notice the smirk on her Gramm's face.

—

Sam threw her hood over her head, just in case. She let the pull of the ring tap into her intuition and it led her to the closest entrance to The Market. Oddly enough, it brought her to a ring activated portal in a thicket of trees, hidden away in the forest area in the park.

Sam stopped in front of the portal, apprehensively; she hadn't been to The Market in months. Way before the accident, before Zoey had become a guardian.

She released the breath she had been holding and stepped through the portal, a tingle running through her body. Sam was well used to the dizzying effects of dimensional transportation.

She emerged onto the dusty streets that ran through The Market. At once her senses were assaulted with the sounds and colors that were ever-present along with the smells of the herbs and potions and even a few food items sold at stalls placed along the paths.

The Market, itself, resembled an Arabian bazaar. However, it was clear that this was not any usual human place of business. Very few humans were welcome if any of them even had the capability of traveling to this market for paranormal and powerful. Luckily, being a friend of Kalush and a witch, Sam was safe.

A wave of memories spilled quickly through Sam's mind as she walked down the path directly in front of her, weaving her way through the bustling crowd.

A few beings gave greetings to her and she waved back; a few even stopped to offer their condolences about Zoey.

Before long, Sam found herself before the herb booth that stood outside one of the few actual buildings. This was the store she often visited when she needed rare potion ingredients and information. Sam rapped on the wooden bench and a slim blue woman emerged through a bead curtain leading into the building.

"Poison Ivy, it is good to see you again, I offer my condolences for Zantana." Sam smiled, she had long ago gotten used to the market folk calling herself and the others by their witch's names.

"Thankyou Zulu, but you can rest assured that Zantana is not 'dead as a doornail,' as a matter of fact she's still in the protection business." Zulu raised her delicate eyebrows.

"Truly Vivasha?" Sam sighed, one of these days she would find out what that meant.

"Truly Zulu, I have it on good authority that Zantana is in fact on her way to becoming a guardian now." Zulu smiled, she had always like Zantana.

"I am glad, now what can I help you with." Sam rolled her eyes at Zulu.

"You know, for a Naiad, you are awfully business orientated; I need some information on demonic rifts." Sam noticed the uncomfortable frown flashing fleetingly across Zulu's face.

"Zulu, what is it?" Zulu bit her lip, a habitual thing she did only when she felt she was going to say something that one of the members of her coven wasn't going to like.

"There is one person who knows a lot about rifts, especially of demonic nature, but I don't think you'll want to see him."

"Him?" Sam knew where this was going.

"Kalush..."

And she was right.

Sam sighed once more and rubbed her temples. "Where can I find him?"

"In the South Park, just past the Dwarves' Amulet store," Zulu directed.

Sam nodded and turned to find Kalush. The sound of Zulu's voice made her turn back.

"Ivy, it really is good to see you again."

Sam smiled and waved to her once more.

She weaved her way through the crowds, looking for the silver-haired Daemon in four months ago, since he had stolen a kiss from her.


	8. Chapter 8

The giant tent where she found him was of rather extravagant design and the sweet smell of dried dates was strong.

Sam pushed the curtain entrance opening. Exquisite large rugs covered the ground, along with the softest looking cushions. Fantastic artifacts and antiques laid strewn across the room as if they were toys in a child's playroom.

"Hello, Kalush." Sam greeted simply as she sat down on one of the cushions. Her violet eyes remained stoic and in control.

"Hello, Vivasha." Kalush, who looked exactly the same as he did those months ago, sent a rather flirtatious grin her way.

Sam remained unfazed. She always had been with him. "I was attacked by a Heat fiend yesterday. In a town called Amity Park. Know anything?"

"Straight to the point today, Ivy? You haven't changed. Alright, I'll see what I..." Kalush began before Sam cut him off.

"There's definitely a rift, no doubt about it. What I wanna know is how and why?"

Kalush sighed lightly, shifting on his cushion.

"I was afraid of this, Ivy. If this is the Amity Park I've been hearing rumors about, then I shouldn't be surprised." Kalush rose from his seat to retrieve a scroll from his bag. He sat back down and laid it out for her to see. It was an odd map. It could zero in on any location the reader wished to see and inspect the strength of the veiling between the mortal realm and the one of magick.

"Here," he said. "This is the last Map of the Veil. I have it zeroed over Amity park. The veil there is weak. It seems old Amity Park has had a long history of supernatural activity. Predominantly from a portal between the human world and another world that is known as the Ghost Zone. Demons generally have nothing to do with ghosts, but, recently this area has had increasing ghostly and demonic activity."

Sam frowned at the map as it quickly changed from Amity Park to what appeared to be Louisiana. In the very heart of the city was a small glimmering line.

"What's that?" Sam asked as she pointed to the location.

"That is the rift you and your coven closed. According to the map, it's healing quite well. Exceptionally well, in fact. If I didn't know any better..." Kalush trailed off again, probably pausing to think.

Sam reached across the gap separating them and poked him in the shoulder, trying to get him to continue.

Kalush looked at her mischievously. "Poking a Daemon lord? Not a wise life choice, Vivasha." Sam shot Kalush an unimpressed look. She never fell for the whole "tough Daemon guy" act. Kalush just rolled his eyes and continued with his theory.

"It's possible that the rift in New Orleans is healing so well because all the demons have turned their attention elsewhere, instead of trying to reopen it."

"The weakened area in Amity Park?"

"The weakened area in Amity Park." Kalush's confirmation sent chills down Sam's spine. She hadn't been able to fight the Heat Fiend alone. How could she possibly vanquish anything else that came through the new rift?

"Sam," he said suddenly.

She glanced up, completely startled. Kalush had never used her human name before.

"Hmm, comes off the tongue easier than Poison Ivy or Vivasha. Still, kinda weird," he chuckled humorlessly. "I've heard that you've wanted to quit the magic biz. If you quit, who will defend the people of Amity Park? These friends of yours may have experience with ghost attacks, but you know and I know that demons are a whole other ballgame. They need you."

Kalush gently took Sam's hands in his.

"The fight which killed Zantana was the final catalyst. Things are going to start changing soon, they're snowballing; the changes have been going slowly, but soon...soon it will be an avalanche. I want to be there for you but... when I kissed you, I already knew that I couldn't ever keep you," he said with a somber smile. "You belong to someone else. I'm okay with that, even I can't fight fate. But...I still wish you could be mine; you're still one of the few people I would ever consider as a friend. If you need help, I will be there for you. Just call for me and I will come."

Kalush smiled at Sam, blushing slightly. She smiled back.

_Gramm always told me I would be a heartbreaker._

Then Kalush gave a short laugh as he sat back. "How did you do it, Ivy? Not long ago, I was one of the most feared Daemons in existence, how the Hell did you tame me like a common dog?"

"My witty charm?" Sam shrugged still smiling. "I should get going; it'll be late when I get back, it was...interesting to see you again, Kalush."

Sam left the pagoda, not waiting to hear if the reformed Daemon had anything else to say. He usually never did.

* * *

As Sam stepped out of the portal and back into the park, the early evening air whipped around her.

Her gut became twisted with the same sense of dread she felt the day of the Heat Fiend attack. Without stopping to even think, she threw her hood over her head and took off with her intuition as her guide.

Within minutes, Sam came across a hulking, yellow-eyed demon attacking two little boys at a playground.

Her violet as glowed in the dimming daylight as she scanned the area. The poor playset had been demolished and smoking scorched marks littered the ground and trees.

It wasn't the amber-eyed beast in front of her that frightened her, but the motionless Phantom lying in a pool of faintly glowing green liquid. He was completely out cold.

Sam felt the magick within her roil and bubble, a familiar sensation. What was unfamiliar was when she reached out with her hand, and, from ten meters away, "grabbed" the demon she with a blue beam of power and flung him all the way across the playground and out of the park. Not grasping the gravity of what she had just done, Sam ran over to the boys

"Are you two okay?" she asked in a firm tone. The poor things nodded, too shaken to speak.

"What are you kids even doing out this late?" Sam scolded. "Go home, both of you, before you get caught in the crossfire!"

"Y-yes, ma'am!" one the boys stuttered. They both took off running and Sam turned her attention back to the recovering demon on the road.

"Damn," Sam muttered to herself realizing it was a weaker middle level demon known as a Kojack. It almost looked like a giant 10-foot tall gorilla, but with deep, blood-red fur, and razor-sharp claws and fangs. This particular species relied on their brute strength and not much else. They were easy enough to kill, especially with the potions in her satchel that sapped both demonic strength and power, but Sam was starting to worry about Phantom. He hadn't moved once since she'd gotten there.

Taking a steadying breath, Sam pulled a potion from her satchel as she dropped into a defensive pose. She took a quick glance to make sure it was the right potion before she charged at the demon. The terrifying beast prepared for the assault by dropping to one knee and crossing its arms in front of its face, a common tactic for this demon that her coven often exploited. When she got close to the demon she shifted her pace slightly and, using the crouching demon like a vault, leaped over the demon smashing the potion vial against its head as she went.

She could hear the potion burn and sizzle against the Kojack's skin, as well as the ape-like beast screech and howl.

Landing on her feet, as she had done so many times before, Sam was quick in putting some distance between herself and the demon. The Kojack let out a low grumble as its power and strength began to ebb. It stood up with shaky legs. Sam took advantage of the moment and charged, landing a powerful roundhouse kick to the demon's head, followed up by a quick blow to its knees. The demon fell down in a heap, letting out a pitiful moan.

"It's good to be back," Sam said, a familiar smirk of victory stretching out on her face.

As the demon surged to its feet again, Sam launched herself towards it, that same energy as before surging through her, propelling the Kojack through the air after a hefting kick and onto the stump of a nearby broken tree.

Without a pause, Sam reached for the more familiar power of her plant manipulation; she sent it pulsing through the ground and up to the stump, creating new shoots of powered growth from the damaged tree, entangling and piercing the demon's now paralyzed body.

Sam backed up to avoid the inevitable explosion that came when any middle-level demon croaks. It came quickly, a rolling wave of flame and a howling scream. All that was left was a mild scorch mark on the tree.

A moan of pain caused Sam to let out a surprised gasp. She looked towards Phantom to see that he was regaining consciousness.

Relieved to see Phantom was alright, Sam released the breath of hair she had been holding under her hood and darted out of the park. What she didn't notice however was a figure dressed in a red battlesuit, riding an impressively built hoverboard, observing the mysterious hooded figure for the entirety of the battle.

* * *

It didn't take long for Sam to get back to her Gramm's place. She rushed through the front door and quickly closed the door, pressing her back against it in pure confusion and even a little fear. It was quiet in the large mansion; her Gramm was probably asleep.

Nyx was perched atop the large baluster of the staircase. Her green eyes landing on her mistress' distressed form. Sam ran up the stairs and went straight to her room with the said cat right behind her.

Sam glanced quickly at her vanity and growled when she saw her hair; green powers streaks illuminated in her hair which had lightened to a viable purple, as opposed to its normal tinted black.

Replaying the fight over in her mind, Sam realized what she had done; the moment she had reached for that demon, energy coursing through her, fling the Kojack with just a simple kick or probably without even touching it...

"Zoey's power..." Sam collapsed on her bed and stared at her hands, hands which had channeled a power that was not hers. An echo of her conversation with Kalush floated its way through her consciousness.

"Meow..." Nyx jumped up on the bed, the little ivy leaf charm ringing from the tied cloth around her neck. The black feline lovingly rubbed against Sam's hipbone as she got her head scratched.

_The fight which killed Zantana was the final catalyst. Things are going to start changing soon, they're snowballing; the changes have been going slowly, but soon...soon it will be an avalanche..._

Was this what he meant? Was this the change he had spoken about?

No, changes, plural. If this was the start then, where would this end?

In a flurry of motion, Sam snatched the cloth wrapped book of shadows she thought she would never read again.

* * *

By morning, Sam's hair had resumed its normal color, not a hint of purple or green to be seen. Her eyes, however, were now bloodshot from a night of reading all pages of the Grimoire.

Nothing new had revealed itself, no magical flicking to a page to explain this power alteration.

Nothing.

With a distinct lack of enthusiasm, Sam took a morning shower and threw her artifact pocket watch around her neck, a purple tank top, a comfortable loose skirt that went to her knees and a soft black cardigan. She just put on some mascara and lipgloss. She was too tired for anything else.

Just like every other morning during the week, she found Danny standing there waiting for her.

It was strange. Sam could feel waves of absolute exhaustion roll of him. And not the typical "wake up early for school", but actual exhaustion.

"What happened to you?" She asked. Her eyes scanned his unusually pale skin, noticing the underlying stress in the dark rings under his fogged blue eyes.

"I got into a fight after school yesterday," he replied, giving her a reassuring grin. And just like before, he scanned over her, seeing her drowsiness. "Are you alright? You don't look so good either." The worry was more obvious in his eyes than he probably thought it was.

"Oh," she timidly placed her hand on her reddening cheek. Maybe a little bit of makeup would've been a good idea. "I-I..."

Danny's face became red as well, feeling like had just stuck his foot in his mouth.

"S-sorry!" He stuttered. "I didn't mean you look bad! I-I just meant..."

Sam stifled a giggle, and just rolled her eyes. "Danny, it's okay. I just couldn't sleep," she said. "I've been thinking about some...stuff and trying to figure things out, but I can't. It's easier to have a conversation with a brick wall, I guess."

And yet this conversation was even easier, somehow.

"Not if it's a brick wall named Dash." Both teens gave a laugh as they made their way to school.

Their laughter ended as their eyes locked. An uncomfortably pleasant spark was felt and realized that they had both been staring, they quickly broke the eye contact.

Sam could feel her face grow warm again as she shyly tucked her raven hair behind her ear. She didn't notice Danny nervously tug on the collar of his grey t-shirt and he let out a puff of air, his own cheeks once again going pink.

They traveled in silence for a bit, but Sam couldn't help but look over at Danny. She noticed he still didn't really have his usual dorky, cheery charm today. He truly was worn out. What kind of fight did he get into?

Subtly, Sam twined her fingers with Danny's. Doing so allowed her to share the strength and healing energy she drew from the warm morning sun.

It seemed to work. Sam watched as Danny, unknowingly, started to get some color back.

Valerie and Tucker were waiting for them at the school entrance, and just as quietly as she had entwined them, Sam detangled her fingers from Danny's.

"So, did you hear, Sam?" Valerie asked quite suddenly.

"Hear what?"

"Phantom got saved by a girl!" Tucker exclaimed. "Even more interesting was that, from what we heard, it wasn't the Red Huntress."

"The Red who?" Sam's head started whipping up in a frenzy. Was her cover blown?

"The Red Huntress. She and Phantom were rivals for a while. However, they came to a truce not too long ago." Valerie spoke rather proudly.

"Okay, backpedal a bit for me. What was Phantom attacked by?" The whirlwind in Sam's head would not subside.

"No one knows _what_ it was," Danny replied with a shrug. "But it did some real damage to the park and Phantom."

"And this girl who saved Phantom, who was she?" Sam asked, determined to know how much they knew. How much of her features did those two boys see?

How much had Phantom seen?

"All we know is that she had purple and green hair. No one saw her face."

Thank the Fates! And just like that, a humungous weight was lifted from Sam's chest and it felt safe to breathe again.

Sam couldn't believe her luck; she'd gotten away with vanquishing a demon in a public place and no one had any solid lead on her identity.

"Maybe she's a new ghost hunter?" Danny inquired. "She seemed to know what she was doing from what I heard."

"Yeah," Tucker scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Like we need more of those."

If Sam had been paying attention, she would have noticed Valarie throw a glare in his direction.

Walking through the front entrance of the school, Sam cracked a small smile as she listened to Danny, Tucker, and Valerie swap ideas on the mysterious new heroin that had saved Amity Park's ghostly hero.

She enjoyed the feeling of being part of a group unraveling a paranormal enigma. Even if she was the enigma. It felt familiar.

They weren't her coven, though. It would be dangerous if they found out the truth. They could expose her. While ghosts were a more common and accepted occurrence, especially in this town, the rest of the magickal community preferred to lurk in the shadows. It made battling for dominion over the Earth easier when normal humans didn't butt in. Creatures that didn't stay hidden, such as all the demons that had been popping up, just created havoc.

And that was Sam's job, to keep that balance in check and keep people safe.

Suddenly, a cold wave of panic washed over Sam. An unexpected bout of anxiety rushed through her body, therefore rooting her in place. Her breathes came in short gasps and her vision blurred.

Danny stopped to see her completely frozen in place. His brow furrowed in concern.

"Sam?" He spoke gently. "Are you sure you're alright?"

She didn't hear him; the sounds of the school hallway dulled and mixed, turning into an excruciating bombardment of white noise. Her head felt like it was going to explode.

Just when Sam thought she was going to scream, it stopped. The noise cleared into identifiable sounds; her vision sharpened and the picture before her made her breathing stop altogether.


	9. Chapter 9

The hall was littered with light wisps of colors drifting motionless in a formless void. Sam could somewhat make out the inside of the school building, but it looked as if she was peering through a piece of smokey quartz. Everything was slightly blurred and the background was shrouded in a greyish hue.

Sam watched as the formless furries of colors drifted aimlessly through the halls. She was confused. What was she looking at? One wisp gave off a warm, candle-like glow; it stood right next to her. It gave her a feeling of safety, security.

It didn't last.

In a sudden jolting motion, the world spun around her. It was as if she was on the edge of an off-kilter, a giant balancing plate as it was spun around on a stick. Out of nowhere, a new wisp of light appeared; one that did not feel safe. It gave off an unusual vibe. Certainly not human. It was difficult to decipher between one energy signature of the other.

In a dizzying blur, Sam watched the scene and began to feel nauseous as she often did when she stared at a TV while the program on it was paused. Then she realized why...

Reality was on pause.

Sam was witnessing a split second of reality from the astral realm. The world just beyond that man. She watched with a gut-wrenching jolt as time caught itself napping and moved forward once more.

The unpleasant, inhuman color wisp dove down through the school's roof. At the same time, Sam's consciousness was hurled back into her body so fast, she got whiplash. Within a second, it sent her spiraling into the darkness of unconsciousness. Sam never even felt her body hit the floor. But that's because she also didn't feel the arms had caught her just in time.

* * *

Touch was the first sense to come back to her. A pair of warm, soft yet calloused hands held firmly onto her right hand. They were slightly tensed as if the person they belonged to was greatly worried. A familiar weight lay on her chest, her silver pocket watch, was reassuring to her. The material beneath her was soft, mildly "squidgy", as Barbra would put it. Probably a mattress.

Her sense of smell picked up the clean – sterile - air along with chemical medicines. It made her throat sting. A medical area of some sort.

She soon heard soft murmuring. It was like a radio losing its signal, going in and out. All of it coming from her left.

"...knew it was..."

"...Before his senses..."

"...Something odd..."

Her eyes slid open slowly, being careful not to blind herself from the lights. She glanced to her left to see Valerie, Tucker, Jazz and Mr. Lancer were too busy talking amongst themselves to notice her awakening. She felt her hand being squeezed and turned her attention to her right. She was too weak to hide the meek smile at the boy who had her hand clasped in his.

Danny.

He smiled back at her, his icy blue eyes were soft. He had one hand let free from holding hers to brush a few stray strands of hair out of her eyes. Sam paled when she saw the faint shades of purple in a few locks. Danny frowned when he noticed her discomfort, but the others in the room got slightly louder and startled the two of them. The heated conversation continued and Danny leaned in closer to Sam.

"You remember what happened?" he whispered.

It was Sam who frowned this time. Danny wasn't just whispering because she was in the nurse's office, His voice carried a certain rasp as if he'd gone and screamed his throat raw.

"Hey?" Danny's quiet prompt jolted Sam back to his question.

Did she remember what happened? Sam tried to answer as she thought back.

She remembered colors... soul auras maybe, but what was she, how had she... unless Sam had used another power not her own. This one reminded of the power Barbra had once described, a mix between Barbra's own powers of Second and FarSight. Barb had dubbed the power Astral Vision.

Things are going to start changing soon...

Sooner than she thought.

However, she couldn't just say she involuntarily achieved astral projection. Such a confession could end badly no matter if they believed her or not.

"No," Sam replied quietly. "I just remembered walking through the front doors, and then...nothing. Do you know what happened?"

"Ghost attack," Danny stated simply. "You must have fainted."

Both teens thought that highly unlikely.

"Is everyone else okay?" Sam's whispering voice was laced with genuine concern.

Danny nodded as he rested his chin on the mattress.

"Phantom came to the rescue, as usual," he stated. "Can't say the same for...erm...certain parts of the school. A few broken walls, here and there, but-"

"Sam, it's interesting that you actually passed out before the ghost showed up." Valerie's sharp voice cut in. Apparently the debate was over.

"Did I?" Sam made sure to sound as confused as possible.

Tucker nodded with a hint of jeer in his green eye. "Oh yeah, we all saw it," he chirped. "We were by the lockers and you went whiter than a sheet. You passed out right into Danny's arms. It was like a romance movie or something!"

Sam felt her being gently lifted off of her pillow.

"Then the ghost came through the ceiling and when straight for you two; Danny picked you up and moved you both out of harm's way. It's his hero complex." Tucker continued to chatter.

Danny sat up straight grabbing Sam's now free pillow. Annoyance at his best friend clear on his face.

"That's about when Phantom showed up; he kicked ghostly butt and left. So, Danny had to carry you here himself. Total knight in shining armor moment."

Tucker opened his mouth as if to add more until the pillow was flung into Tucker's face with a considerable amount of speed and strength.

* * *

Sam slid into her seat. The group of six had been booted from the infirmary when the nurse arrived in time to see Danny chuck a pillow at Tucker.

Thankfully the students had Lancer's class now and Jazz had a free period, so they wouldn't be in any trouble. Or any more trouble at least.

The nurse had saved Sam from what could have been a rather awkward game of 20 questions. Questions she would not be able to answer.

The class was in a bit of a mood from the earlier ghost attack, so no work was done. Gossip filled the room as Mr. Lancer read a book. He wasn't even going to bother pretending to teach a class like some of the other teachers did after a ghost attack. Although there was a homework assignment written on the board, just in case.

Valerie was sat on her desk and leaned over Tucker's shoulder watching the screen of his PDA as he played a game of something or other. Jazz had decided to spend her free period with them, a trick she could only get away with in Lancer's classes and was now talking to Danny, who had a bag of throat lozenges and a bottle with lots of honey in it, as Jazz had mentioned. None of them had even mentioned why Danny's voice had suddenly caved. Or why he had a giant bag of lozenges in his locker for just such an occasion.

Sam sat slumped at her desk, focusing on one of the lozenges on Danny's desk. It had slipped out of the bag and just sat there.

She thought back to yesterday when she had used another's power to hurl the demon through the air.

Telekinesis, Zoey's primary power...

_I wonder..._Sam thought to herself.

Danny glanced over at Sam, she didn't notice. He raised an eyebrow at her sudden look of determination wondering what she was thinking; she was focusing on the lozenge on the desk, right by his elbow. Danny turned back to Jazz, only half-listening to his sister.

Sam closed her eyes and let herself fall into a meditative trance. She reached into her well of power at the heart of her soul. She could feel her fingers reach towards the lozenge.

In her mind's eye, Sam saw the well of power. Something was different. There were three new strands: blue, silver/black and, gold, twining around and through the vibrant greens and purples of her own power.

She paused. Blue had always been Zoey's color, even her glamor was blue. Silver/Black was, no doubt, Selene; an almost impossible fusion of two colors that the quintet had only ever seen on the ex-thief, and gold belonged to Barbra, whose glamour form always glittered like the sun.

Sam understood color affiliation; she herself wore greens and purples to avoid disharmonizing. Colors had vibrations, scents, and sounds; when the girls wore colors that clashed with their power's color aura, their powers went wonky.

In two days, Sam had used two powers that did not belong to her, now two strands of power that should have clashed with her own were harmonized as if the had always been there.

Was this what the spell in the Grimoire had meant?

Hearts to hearts to never be divided. And why was a Selene colored strand twined within her power core?

Sam reached for the blue strand and was suddenly enveloped in a feeling that was so... Zoey. Sam pulled back from the power drawing only the tiniest thread with her. Even the thread hummed with "Zoey-ness".

Focusing her attention between the strand of power and the lozenge, Sam almost missed that harpy, Paulina's, whining voice rise up over the rest of the class.

"It's just not fair! Why didn't Phantom show up to beat that ghost?" she complained.

_What?_

Phantom hadn't shown up? Danny and the others said that she did. Her head turned towards Paulina so fast Sam almost gave herself a whiplash relapse.

Unfortunately for the lozenge, Sam had already extended her "Zoey" power over it. So when Sam turned her head, the lozenge was cast off like a hook on a fishing line and ended up pelting it into Paulina's hair where it promptly decided to stick.

Sam felt dread rise up from her stomach and quickly looked away back at Danny, who was looking at her, a look of confusion that he wore quite a lot around her. Luckily, Sam already looked confused as well, so she didn't need to "slip her face on", as Haley liked to say.

"AHHHH!" Paulina's shriek drew everyone's attention. It gave Sam the perfect opportunity to slip out of the classroom as the students worried over Paulina's poor lozenged hair.

* * *

Sam took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh afternoon air. She plopped down at the base of a large oak tree in the school courtyard. Her head was still pounding from this morning. She closed her eyes as she leaned back on the bark; she felt the tree donate its strength and a sudden warmness coursed through her veins. Her thoughts had been buzzing in her head like a hive angry bees, and the classroom was too cramped.

With all these changes and her confusion with Phantom, the one saving grace for today was that no demons have popped up.

Yet, anyway.

"You should be in class," came a voice with spectral echo.

Speak of the devil...

"Hello, Phantom." Sam kept her eye shut in hopes of him leaving her alone.

"You should be in class," he repeated. "It's not to be out by yourself."

Sam held back a scoff. She didn't even look up at him

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked.

Odd, his voice sounded...raspy?

"No, not really," she said rather bluntly.

"I'm not gonna leave you alone until you tell me," He sat down next to her.

"What?" she hissed. "You got nothing else better to do?"

"What else is better than spending time with a beauty like you?" The ghost boy said sultrily. He couldn't stop scanning over her lovely features. She just...drew him in.

Sam turned her face away in a pout so he wouldn't see the blush rising on her cheeks. The pair sat in companionable silence for a while. Finally Phantom spoke.

"Are you feeling better now?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" Sam said, looking at Phantom as she pushed her hair out of her face.

"Well, you fainted at school this morning" Phantom replied. "I'm just wondering if, y'know, you're okay?"

Sam sighed tiredly. "Stuff has just been...happening lately. I'm having a hard time understanding it. A-and it's all happening so fast. I'm barely over being in a new place with new people, a-and I'm still haunted by my old home...I-I just...argh!"

She felt a strong arm rest on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay," Phantom said calmly. "From what I've seen, you're settling pretty well so that a good start. You shouldn't stress so much to the point you make yourself sick. You have your friends, your grandma, and...you have me. If there's anything I can do to help, I'm here for you."

Sam was quite startled at this looked up at him. She smiled at him as she felt her heart skip a beat or two.

It was strange. His acidic green eyes were kind and friendly, and there was something about that warmness in them that made them so familiar.

What she didn't notice was Phantom staring just as fondly into her glimmering lilac eyes. He'd never seen eyes like hers before. He found them...enticing.

Finally realizing that he was staring, Phantom quickly cleared his throat as he ran his hand through his ivory hair.

"Y-you seem tired. I'll take you home so you can rest. I don't want you to get more sick."

Sam's smile faded as she came to realize something about Phantom.

Instead of replying, she had a question for him. "Hey Phantom, were you at school this morning?"


	10. Chapter 10

"U-um, I, heh," Phantom stammered. "Well, yeah! There was a ghost attack, so..."

"Funny, 'cause many students were quite shocked that you hadn't been there," Sam narrowed her eyes at him.

She could've sworn she saw a bead of sweat trickle down Phantom's brow.

_What kind of ghost sweats?_

"O-oh, well,..." he stammered once more. "I-I showed up later! The ghost had made his way outside the school building. I guess no one saw me."

He then sent a distracting, flirty smirk her way. "Were you, uh, expecting me? Sorry to disappoint."

But Sam refused to be thrown off by his charm although her cheeks did turn a shade of light pink. "If you came later," she inquired. "How did you know I fainted?"

The smirk of his face was wiped clean off, and she could see the spark of panic in his green eyes.

Phantom couldn't help but gulp. He was stuck.

"Well, y-you see..." he cleared his throat. "Sam, I-I..."

"ARF! ARF!"

Out of nowhere, the unmistakable sound of a puppy barking echoed through the air.

Sam looked around for the source of the sound. "Huh?"

Phantom, while relieved by the distraction, groaned in exasperation as he smacked his forehead. "Oh, no..."

Sam laughed. "What?"

"It's nothing. It's just-GAH!" Before Phantom could finish, he was tackled to the ground by a little pitbull puppy. The canine's arrival would have beeen unusual but the fact that it was glowing a bright green took all her focus.

"Ugh! Ack! Cujo!" Phantom struggled against the endless dog kisses landing on his face. "Down, boy! Down, boy!"

Sam laughed at the amusing sight of the ghost boy and his...ghost dog?

Phantom quickly chucked a ball of ectoplasm into the park across the street. "FETCH!"

Cujo leaped off of Phantom and ran after the ecto-ball to retrieve it.

Phantom sighed in relief as he stood up, rubbing a sore spot on his back.

"I didn't realize ghosts could have pets," Sam said as she stifled her laughter.

Phantom chuckled nervously. "Heh, um, sorry, he's a little hyper. He loves to jump."

Sam scoffed. "You still haven't answered my question," she said, crossing her arms.

"Um..." Phantom hummed tensely.

"I'm sorry, Phantom, but your story just doesn't line up," Sam said. Laughter had been completely wiped from her face.

He seemed determined to avoid eye-contact with her. "You see...WHOA!"

Before Phantom knew what was happening, Cujo had returned and playfully sunk his sharp teeth into the white belt around Phantom's waist, slaming the white-haired youth into the pavement in an attempt to play.

"No! Cujo! Down! Down!" he yelled as the green ghost dog, surprisingly strong for being so small, dragged him off like a chew toy.

Sam's eyes widened as she watched him being benevolently dragged away by the dog. Phantom looked back at her apologetically.

"We'll talk later, Sam, I promise!" he hollered. "I gotta put this guy back in Ghost Zone!"

And just like that, he was gone.

_What just happened? _

Sam just shook her head before the bell rang for her next class. Knowing she probably couldn't get away with missing another class, she walked away from the oak tree and back through the school doors.

That afternoon was beautiful. Being late August, while it was still a bit warm, there was a lovely touch of autumn chill in the air.

It was perfect weather for gardening! Sam was pleasantly planting some thistle. It was a very good addition to your garden if you wish for protection against negative forces. And you can't get anymore negative than roaming demons.

Sam diligently dug at the soil, making it deep enough for the roots to stretch. The garden was starting to look much better. All the dead plants had been removed and she had laid out some of her own special blend of soil that was perfect for any plant she wished to have.

_Perhaps some foxglove? I'd have to put some sort of ward on it so no animals will be tempted to eat it. Definitely some lavender for Gramm. She likes it in her tea_, Sam thought excitedly. Her eyes glimmered at this rare bout of giddiness. _Maybe some lotus flowers in the pond? Great for meditation._

Thinking about the pond made her thirsty. Sam stood and stretched, her back limbs stiff from being crouched over the garden all afternoon.

She walked along the cobblestone path and up the steps of the back porch, leaving her muddied gloves on a bench.

As she was making her way to the kitchen, she heard her Gramm watching the news in the living room. Sam wasn't really listening until she heard something that almost made her choke on the lemonade she poured herself.

"A witch!" Came the voice of a child on the TV. "I saw her!"

Sam rushed to the living room and saw the face of one of the little boys from the park. He had a news anchor's microphone held in his face.

"A witch, you say?" said the news anchorman.

"Yeah!" he said enthusiastically. "I saw her use her powers to beat the monster! She saved me and Ricky!"

"Amazing," the anchorman said in awe. "What else did you see, Miles? How did she beat the beast that attacked you and your friend?"

"It was so cool! She used some sort of blue magic to throw the monster all the way across the park!" Miles stated. "I know she told me to run, but I just wanted to watch a little bit more. She pulled out this bottle of weird juice that hurt the monster. She also controlled plants that caused it to explode!"

"That's quite a story! Are you positive you saw all this?" the anchorman asked.

"Yes! It was...incredible!" the boy smiled gleefully, the youthful gap in his teeth gleaming on the screen. "She's a witch! A real, live witch!"

The anchorman chuckled as the camera panned over to him. "Well, folks of Amity Park, you heard it here first. Could it be that our town has a witch in its midsts? Who is she? And is she in league with our notorious, ghostly hero, Phantom? We'll go live with a private conference with Mayor Masters after these messages."

"How about them apples, Button?" Her Gramm smiled up at her from the couch, Nyx fast asleep in her lap.

Sam scoffed as she went back into the kitchen. "The kid's got a good imagination."

Once again, she seemed to have missed her Gramm's coy chuckle as she stroked Nyx's silky fur.

—-

Back in the park, after all the news crews and investigators left and the sun had set, the infamous Phantom himself arrived at the damaged scene of the battle between that monster and the mysterious woman.

Boots planted firmly on the grass, his green eyes scanned the broken pieces of the playground and the numerous scorch marks left behind, including the ginormous one from when the hooded woman had defeated the beast.

He illuminated his hand with ecto-energy to give him more light. He could still smell the burnt wood from the explosion.

"Who the hell are you?" He muttered, shaking his head.

"Danny?" Came Valerie's voice.

"There you are, dude," He heard Tucker call.

He sighed and turned to the two of them walking towards him, Jazz accompanying them. Valerie was dressed in her Red Huntress suit.

In a flash of light, Danny transformed back to black-haired, blue-eyed Fenton. "Hey, guys," he said. His uneasiness was still prevalent in his voice.

"Spot anything?" Jazz asked.

Danny ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "Not yet. I just got here."

"Well, based on all this damage," Tucker quipped. "We got a lot of lookin' to do."

He pulled out his PDA and began to scope out the area.

"Seriously," Valerie crossed her arms as she observed the destroyed play set. "Danny, are you sure this thing wasn't another ghost?"

Danny grunted. "I'm positive! My ghost sense didn't go off; I only found it by just being in the park. You should know, you saw the whole fight."

"Then what the heck was it?" Jazz asked, shining her flashlight on the burnt tree.

Danny gave her an irritable glance.

"How should I know?" he scoffed. "But, never mind that. What I wanna know is who that girl was that turned it into a pile of ash."

Valerie searched around for clues as well. "Whoever she was, she certainly knew what she was doing from what I saw."

Tucker snickered, as he tinkered with his PDA. "That kid on the news said something about her being a witch."

Danny raised his brow. "A witch?"

Jazz tapped her chin. "Well, I mean, it's not the most outlandish thing we've come across."

"Or maybe she's a new escapee from the Ghost Zone," Valerie huffed. Despite her truce with Danny, she still had no forgiveness for any other specter they came across.

"Well, ghost or...witch?" Danny spoke, a curious twitch in his eye. "Either way, we should probably find out more about her."

"Including, whatever the hell she needed this glass bottle for," Tucker chimed in.

The other three looked over to see him crouched over scattered broken glass on the pavement.

"What do you think was in it?" Danny asked as he, too, observed the broken glass.

"Not sure," Tucker replied, rifling through his backpack. He pulled out a pair of tweezers and plucked up a shard. A drop of glimmering light pink liquid trickled off the glass and dripped onto the ground.

"It must've been some kind poison or something," said Valerie. "I saw her smash the bottle on the creature's head."

"We'll just have to locate this stranger and find out her story," Tucker stated as he stood up, the tweezers still in hand.

"Speaking of strange," Jazz said, throwing a smirk at her brother. "What happened with Sam?"

"What do you mean?" Danny asked. He continued to observe the battered playground.

"You know, when you followed her out after throwing that lozenge at Paulina," she replied.

Danny groaned. "For the last time, it wasn't me!"

"Right," Jazz rolled her eyes.

Danny sighed. "I just went out to check on her. I mean, she freakin' fainted, so I wanted to make sure she was alright."

Unseen by Danny, Valerie and Tucker sent each other a knowing look.

"I showed up as Phantom, so she wouldn't question why Fenton was missing class, but..." Danny trailed off.

"But...?" Tucker quirked.

"She started to ask questions," Danny said, uneasily. He ran his hand through his hair. "Questions that I couldn't answer."

"Do you think she's starting to figure out that you're Phantom?" Valerie asked.

"I'm not sure. Cujo came out of nowhere and dragged me off before she could say anything else."

"Wow, so dog of yours actually came in handy," Jazz snickered.

"He's not my dog, and he's come in handy plenty of times!" Danny protested.

"Whatever, so you're sure that Sam doesn't know anything?" asked Jazz.

"While she may not know exactly but she's not stupid, Jazz. She's definitely starting to notice that something is fishy," her brother stated. "And the worst part is that...I...I don't think I can hide it from her."

"What do you mean "you can't hide it from her"? You've kept your powers hidden from everybody else!" Jazz exclaimed.

"I don't know, okay! It's just this feeling that I have around her!" Danny yelled back.

All three of them stared at him.

His cheeks became ruby red. "Not-not anything weird!"

Valerie just rolled her eyes. "Look, it doesn't matter. This just means we have to be extra careful around Sam. She's a clever one, so we just have to watch our step."

—-

"It's almost time. Just a matter months," a vindictively suave male voice echoed through the halls of the grand building of City Hall.

"Are you certain, master?" Spoke a ghostly vulture.

"Absolutely," the man chuckled, his blue eyes gleaming with malevolence. "There's still some work to be done, and some troublemakers to care of."


	11. Chapter 11

_How did he know I fainted?_

_Why do I hear one story from him, and another from Danny and the others? _

_How much do I need to worry about that kid from the news? _

Thoughts were buzzing around Sam's skull like a hive enraged bees. She sat at her kitchen table, stirring her cup of tea on autopilot, Nyx relaxing in her lap as usual. One after the other, until one particular thought stopped her mind right in its tracks.

_His voice...Phantom's voice was scratchy that day...just like...Danny? _

_Could it be possible? _

_Anything is possible, of course. _

_It would explain a lot._

Her memories flashed back to the conversation she overheard that day, between Danny, Tucker, Valerie, and Lancer. Danny had said she had told him about the Heat Fiend. But it had been the mysterious Phantom she spoke to.

Barbra's premonition echoed in her ears. "You'll need it if you want to save him, your true one. He walks in two worlds and yet he belongs to neither."

_Two worlds? _

_Oh Fates, oh my...Danny and Phantom..._

"Sam!"

Sam practically jumped out her chair, and Nyx did not appreciate the disturbance.

She looked up to see the concerned icy blue eyes of the very boy that plagued her thoughts.

Danny places a hand on her shoulder. "Sam, are you okay? You looked a little dazed; do you feel faint again?"

Sam's cheeks flushed. _Are they really the same person? _

She took a breath. "N-no, I'm just tired."

Danny sat down at the table, ignoring the suspicious glare from Nyx. What does that cat have against me?

He cleared his throat and smiled at her. "It's almost time to go. Your grandma let me in."

Sam smiled back. "Alright, I'll get my backpack."

After putting her cup in the sink and saying bye to her Gramm, Sam found herself walking down the sidewalk with Danny.

And, believe it or not, he was making her laugh.

"...There was ectoplasm all over the kitchen!" Danny laughed along with her. "I thought my mom was gonna have a cow!"

"Do all of your dad's inventions end up like that?" Sam asked, almost choking on her own laughter.

"Only the ones my mom doesn't help him with," he smirked at her.

Said smirk turned into a genuine smile as he listened to her laugh.

Before he could even stop himself, he spoke. "You have a nice laugh."

Sam blushed and covered her mouth. It came as no surprise to anyone that Sam did not laugh too often, at least not genuinely. The only other time she's laughed in the last month of her living in Amity Park was that time in gym with Valerie.

This was actually the first time she has really laughed in front of Danny.

Danny, realizing he had said that out loud, chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck.

"H-heh, I..." he stuttered, sheepishly.

"Thank you," she replied in a shy, hushed voice.

Once again, the two locked eyes and shared a timid smile with one another.

Danny opened his mouth to speak again, only to be interrupted.

"Hey, guys!" Tucker hollered at them as he walked towards them. Valerie was with him.

She waved at them. "Hello, you two."

"Hey," Danny said, quickly. _Great timing, as usual. _

Tucker looked back and forth between Danny and Sam, observed their red cheeks, and put on a rather shit-eating grin.

"We, uh, interrupting somethin'?" He snickered.

"No!"

"Of course not!"

It didn't help that they objected at the same time.

Sam shyly tucked her hair out of her face. "We should go," she stated. "We're going to be late."

As they started walking together, once again the knowing smiles were exchanged between Tucker and Valerie.

—

The smell of bulldozer exhaust nauseated Sam. She glared at the men in hard hats as they took chainsaws to the beautiful trees.

She could feel her power, her magic with the growth roil and rumble in her blood. She could crush every single bulldozer and crane on the site like they were toys.

The sign that she, Danny, and Tucker walked by said that an ugly new office building was being put in place of the lovely trees. By order of Mayor Vlad Masters.

She hadn't even met the man yet, and she hated him.

They were currently outside Valerie's apartment, waiting for her. Sam crossed her arms and growled as a beautiful tree was carelessly sliced down.

Danny must have seen her anger. He came up behind her. "Sam, you...okay?"

Sam huffed. "Sure, fine."

Danny glanced at her to see that she was practically boring holes into each and every construction worker. It came as no surprise to him that something like a construction site would upset her. Her grandmother had told him how much she loved nature, plants and animals alike.

_Maybe I should try to distract her. _

"Sam..." Danny started.

"Daniel!" Called a suave, older voice.

Within a instant, Danny gritted his teeth. Sam looked at him, now confused at _his_ sudden look of utter irritation.

Danny faced a tall, middle aged man. He was dressed in a debonair black suit, and his silver hair tied back in a low ponytail. The man held an arrogant, yet gentlemanly air about him.

He strutted over to them like an overconfident peacock.

Anger rolled off Danny in tide waves. The black haired boy had stood firmly in front of Sam, making sure she was hidden behind him. Nevertheless, Sam peeked over Danny's shoulder at the man.

"What do you want, Vlad?" Danny snapped. He spat out the man's name as if it were poison.

"Is it so odd for a mayor to say hello to the citizens of his city?" Vlad putting a slimy grin on his face. His eyes then landed in the violet eyed girl looking over Danny's shoulder.

"Ah!" The mayor exclaimed. "A new friend of yours?"

Danny growled. "None of your business."

"Manners, my boy," Vlad sighed. He turned his attention to Sam. "Wonderful to meet you, my dear. I am Vlad Masters, mayor of Amity Park."

Sam's eyes grew dark. "You're Vlad Masters?"

The amused look on his face didn't diminish in the least. "Yes," he hissed.

Sam brushes past Danny, ignoring his anxious expression.

"So, this is _your_ construction site?" She snapped.

"Indeed it is, my dear girl," Vlad chuckled. "I have to expand my business."

"Is making ugly buildings part of your business?" Sam said angrily as she crossed her arms.

Despite his worry, Danny couldn't help but smile behind her. As if she couldn't impress him anymore than she already has.

A little spark of annoyance gleamed in Vlad's eyes, but it quickly became overshadowed by an arrogant smirk. "All in the name of our progressive era, Miss...?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Manson."

"Ah! Manson!" Vlad exclaimed. "Jeremy and Palmea's daughter. Samantha, correct?"

Danny exchanged uneasy looks with Tucker.

Sam's face remained firm. "Yes," she bit out.

"Your father is an old business friend of mine," Vlad chuckled. He looked down to his silver wristwatch. "Well, as pleasant as this chat has been, I have more pressing matters to attend to. If you children will excuse me."

With the same cocky strut he arrived with, he walked away to his awaiting limo.

Before getting in, he sent a menacing smile to Danny. "Wonderful to see you again, Daniel. Give your mother my regards."

For a split second, Danny's eyes flashed a ferocious green. His fists clenched.

_That creep. He's lucky I don't freeze him where he stands._

Danny's anger boiled, before a gentle hand layer on his arm. His now human blue eyes were met once again with Sam's violet gaze.

She now had the same look of concern he had earlier. "Danny, are you okay?"

Taking a deep breath, Danny calmed down enough to smile at her. "Yeah, sorry about that."

"Man, that Vlad creeps me out," Tucker shivered.

Sam crossed her arms. "Do you guys have run-ins with him often?"

Tucker nodded towards Danny. "Danny does. His parents are college friends with him."

Danny was next to shiver. "That, plus he's got a thing for my mom."

"Ew!" Sam gasped.

The sound of machines beeping broke the conversation.

"Alright, Stan!" Called one the construction workers. "This big one's next!"

Sam looked over in horror as they got closer to an absolutely gorgeous oak tree. Chainsaws at the ready.

_No way!_

Like the second wind of a hurricane, Sam's fury came roaring back. Her hands clenched and shook, and her blood pumped in her vein. The electric pulse of unfamiliar magic rumbled through her.

Similar to the sudden rumbling in the sky.

The clouds grew dark, and winds kicked into high speed. Lightning crackled across the sky like a whip!

"Hey! W-where the hell did this come from?" Tucker called over the howling wind, clutching onto his red cap.

Danny held his hand over his brow to protect his eyes. "I don't-..." He looked over at Sam, only to be shocked.

She stood firm in the sudden harsh change of weather, like she didn't even notice. Her arms were held strongly at her sides, her fists still tightly curled. Her furious glare at the workers didn't lessen.

And he may imagining it, but he could swear there was the slightest glimmer of green in her long raven locks that flew around her face. But it was gone before he could get a good look.

"C'mon! Let's get this one last and then get inside!" Another worker cried as he cautiously looked the sky.

As soon as Sam's eyes flashed a furious red, bolts of lightning struck the ground around the tree, throwing the workers of their feet and sent them running. One specific bolt struck a crane that had been holding up a chopped tree.

With the neck of the crane damaged, the tree came down on top of one of the bulldozers, effectively smashing it. Thankfully, no workers had been inside of it.

Sam jumped at the loud and sudden flash of lightning. With her focus broken, the storm clouds quickly calmed and dispersed.

With the dangerous weather now gone, everyone came out from cover. Concerned and confused muttering could be heard amongst them.

"What the hell was that?" Valerie exclaimed. She came running out as soon as the sudden storm stopped.

"Whatever it was," Tucker said, adjusting his red cap back the way he likes it. "It sure did come out of nowhere."

Danny was busy swiping lose leaves out of his hair. "No kidding. That was weird, wasn't it, Sam?"

His voice didn't reach Sam's ears a first. She was too busy staring at the destroyed equipment and the bewildered constructions.

_What in the hell? Weather control? I've never been able to do that. _

_But...Hayley could. _

Sam's eyes widened. Once again, she has acquired a power that wasn't hers. One that had belonged to her one of her sisters.

"Sam!" Danny called, waving his hand in front of her face.

Just like when he startled her in her kitchen, Sam jumped. "What?"

"I asked you about what just happened, but you were totally zoned out," Danny stated. "Sam, are you _sure_ you're okay? I can walk you back home."

Sam cleared her throat and shook her head. "No, Danny. I'm fine, really. I was just startled by the sudden storm."

Danny didn't look too convinced.

"C'mon, guys!" Tucker called. He and Valerie had already started walking. "Let's go. We're gonna be late!"

—

"Could it have been Vortex?" Jazz quipped. "Random weather definitely sounds like him."

The two siblings and Valerie sat on the bleachers in the gym with Sam getting ready to practice on the gymnastics equipment. Ms. Tetslaff had agreed to let Sam use it as long as she was careful.

Danny told Jazz and Lancer about the odd occurrence that morning at the construction site. All day they had been trying to figure out what could've possibly been the cause.

"It couldn't have been," Danny shook his head. "My ghost sense hadn't gone off once. Besides, Vortex is very...extravagant with his work. He would've done more than just couple minutes of lightning."

Valerie sighed. "Then what could it have been? It seems a lot of strange things have been happening, and the usual suspects aren't causing them."

"Maybe it has something to do with Heat thing Danny fought a few weeks ago..." Jazz pondered.

Danny listened to the conversation pretty well, until his eyes landed on Sam while she was stretching. He tried not to stare for too long, but she looked so nice in those shorts. A pair of black shorts and a purple tank top was all she wore, no shoes, which gave him the amusing sight of her dainty little feet. She wore heavy set combat boots a lot, so seeing her bare feet for the first time was...cute.

Danny blushed as his eyes traveled up her long legs and her tiny waist. It was easy to get a good glance in as she stretched her arms up to the sky.

It was only then he heard his sister screech in his ear. "Danny!"

Danny nearly leaped out his seat. "What?"

Jazz rolled her eyes. "I asked you if you've seen any more monsters like that Heat Fiend or that thing that the Good Witch destroyed in the park."

Danny raised a brow. "Good Witch?"

"That's what people are calling her," Valerie laughed. "I think she might be stealing your thunder."

Danny scoffed. "Whatever. And no, Jazz, I haven't."

"Well, I guess we'll just have to keep our eyes and ears open until we figure this out," Jazz said. She then smirked at her brother. "You can stare at Sam all you want after."

"I wasn't-!" Danny yelled, before clamping his hand over his mouth. He quickly looked at Sam. She hadn't noticed while she was getting the uneven bars ready to use.

"I wasn't staring," Danny huffed quietly.

Jazz and Valerie didn't look too convinced.

They then watched as Sam jumped high up and grasped one the bars strongly. She gracefully swung up and around the bar, before adjusting her grip and swinging herself over to the other bar.

"Whoa," Danny breathed.

"Whoo!" Valerie cheered. "Go, girl!"

Sam laughed as she held herself upside down on top of the bar.

"Did you miss your gymnastics team from New Orleans, Sam?" Jazz asked.

_If that's what you wanna call them._ "Yeah, sometimes," she flung herself off the bar and landed harmlessly on the mat. She walked over to the balance beam. "Just kinda weird to go through the day without them."

Danny frowned at her slightly dismal tone. He wondered what had happened to Sam back in her hometown that lead to her moving in with her grandmother. It must've been awful since she had been unconscious for a few weeks before coming to Amity Park. Or at least that's what her grandmother had told him.

"And we should definitely keep looking for her," Jazz said.

"Huh? Who?" Danny asked.

Jazz looked at him. "The Good Witch. Maybe she knows something about these monsters and everything that's been happening. She defeated that creature in the park."

Danny scratched his head. "Absolutely, but how are we going to find her? We don't know anything about her. We don't even know if she's still in town."

Valerie shrugged. "Guess that's just another thing we have to keep an eye out for."

Unbeknownst to the trio, Sam had been listening in for a while. They were not talking as quietly as they think they were.

_Good Witch? Interesting._

She then glanced at Danny, who was too busy talking to Jazz.

_Ghost sense? Even more interesting._

—-

The moon hung high in the sky, shrouded in clouds.

A young woman tossed and turned in her bed. She was drenched in sweat as she screamed in pain. It felt like every artery in her body was set on fire. There was a vicious roaring in her head.

Her roommates came in rushing to help, calling an ambulance.

None of them noticed the blazing set of red eyes glaring at the dark shadows of the room.


End file.
